A Life So Changed
by EgyptGoddess
Summary: SHE was left heartbroken by the death of her Fiance, HE was left destroyed by a fire that took his life, his wife and child and his face. Two tragic souls find each other and learn to love again. Modern Day. EC!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Welcome to my new fic! I hope you enjoy it, it's different than anything I've ever done and different from anything I've read. This story means a lot to me, because while I haven't experianced the heartbreak of losing a loved one in the war in the Middle East, thousands of others have. This story is for them! While you read this story please remember our Service men and women who are fighting right now! **

**I took the liberty of Changing Christine's name to Christina...not a huge change, just something to mix it up a bit. Drop me a line and let me know what you think! A huge thank you to my Beta! Without her there would be many many errors :) Enjoy!**

**Disclaimers: I don't any of the characters...but the characterizations and story line in this story are all mine! **

Left…right…left…right…the pattern was pounded into the pavement under her feet.

Christina Davies kept her eyes on the pavement ahead of her and focused on her rhythm, making sure her breathing was even and calm. She always enjoyed her evening run; it helped her clear her mind so she could think clearly. Even during Basic Training she had loved this part of the harsh physical fitness regime that the trainees were put through. It was one of the few times in that long nine weeks that she had been alone, alone with her thoughts and feelings.

It seemed like a lifetime ago when she'd enlisted in the Army Reserves and been shipped off to the largest training center in the United States Army, Fort Jackson, in sunny South Carolina. Or, as it was more affectionately known in the Army circle 'Relaxin Jackson'. But that had been a mere three years ago, and a lot had happened since she'd returned home from her intial entry training.

Left…right…left…right…

Christina closed her eyes briefly, trying to shut out the thoughts that were invading her mind, trying desperately to ignore the memories that danced before her. Forcing herself to open them again she focused all her energy on running…that at least was safe.

Three years ago she'd left the love of her life, Rodney, to go to Basic Training and Advanced Job Training. He'd been the driving force behind her decision to enlist in the first place. He had spent three years in the Marine Corps and re-uped for another three years, so was 100 pro-military. When she'd had trouble getting school loans he'd suggested she look into the Army. Not thinking much of it she had…and before she knew it, she was on a plane to South Carolina. A year and a half after her return she had returned to school and she and Rodney had become engaged…but fate would not be so kind…

Sixteen months ago Rodney had received a phone call…he was being deployed to Afghanistan…just two days before they were to be married.

Christina remembered the look on his face as she watched him climb aboard the plane along with the rest of his unit…the face she'd loved for five years, the face she'd seen in her dreams while she was away…the face that got her through the hardest times in Basic Training. It was a look of pride and love, love for his unit, for the corps, for his country…and for his fiancé. She waved to him, earning a small smile in return before he disappeared into the bowels of the cargo plane.

She wrote him letters every day, sent him care packages and waited by the phone for the rare call she'd receive from him. When she wasn't writing to him, she was in school…throwing herself into her work without a second thought…anything to make her forget her empty home, forget that her love was fighting a war.

And so she started her routine. She would come home from school and do any work that needed to be done. Clean, write a letter to Rod, laundry, then she would go for her run. Her three mile circuit routed her away from her comfortable townhouse, down into a more 'posh' section of town where the homes were huge and seemed alone on their grand lots…she loved the huge, ancient trees that lined the street and the beautiful mansions that rested far back from the road. Hardly any cars passed her as she ran, not that she would really notice anyway.

Just six more months; then Rod would be home and they could get married! Six more months…what could possibly go wrong in that short amount of time?

As she did every evening, Christina stopped in front of the curving driveway of her favorite house. She had no idea who lived in it, but she didn't care. It was gorgeous! Made from stone, it appeared to be a three-story house. She couldn't even imagine how many rooms were nestled inside. The ivy growing up the walls and the two large rose bushes flanking the huge oak front door gave it an old world charm. Every evening she stopped in front of the gate and looked in…imagining what it would be like to live in such a house.

After a brief pause she started off again. Left…right…left…right. Always keeping an eye on everything around her she started down the little two lane road, never looking back.

What she wasn't aware of was the man in the second story window who every evening would watch for his runner, watch as she stopped in front of his gate and looked up at his home with a wistful look on her beautiful face. Like clockwork the specter would pace in front of his office window and wait for her…he didn't know her name, what she did, where she was from. All he knew was she was beautiful.

He had no fear that the girl would see him in the window watching her like a freak, no one ever saw him. It's hard to see a ghost…

Erik Montgomery sat back down at his desk. He'd gotten his daily glimpse of her…now he was able to continue his work. As he sat looking at the ledger book in front of him, he allowed his mind to wander as it often did in the course of this rather mind-numbing work. He thought of what it might be like to have a normal life, one where he could run out in the day as she did. To allow himself to be seen outside the gated lands that guarded

He slammed hiss fist down angrily on the desktop. He knew from experience that thoughts such as those were dangerous and only led to heartache and misery.

He ran an absent hand over the smooth leather of the pristine white mask that covered the right side of his face. Fate was a cruel mistress and had robbed him of everything he held dear. His fingers stilled, his hands clenched into tight fists.

Until that night three years ago Erik had everything he'd ever dreamed of! A house, a wife and a daughter…he was so happy! His business was thriving both in the United States, Great Britain and France. His beloved wife Alexis and their little angel, Madeline…Lord how he'd loved them!

Then three years ago they'd been torn away from him…along with his face.

He would never forget that night; never in a million years would he forget the horror of that night. It had started out innocently enough. He and Alexis had put Madeline to bed and were curled in front of the fire indulging themselves in a glass of wine. The cook, housekeeper and butler had left for the night, leaving the lovers alone. Erik was a civilian contractor for the US Government. He, along with a panel of scientists, military advisors and engineers, devised new weapons and technology for the ongoing war in the Middle East. His wife…his loving little wife was a teacher. His life was perfect. They were just sitting there, listening to the soft crackling of the fire when a disturbance outside interrupted their night at home. At first it sounded like nothing but a scuffle, perhaps the neighbors were arguing again…

But when a brick flew in the window, raining shattered glass down upon, them Erik knew it was more than a mere argument. He sent Alexis up to check on their daughter while he investigated the disturbance outside. He was more than a tad alarmed when he saw nothing outside his home. He circled the perimeter cautiously, but again found nothing. It wasn't until he heard a woman's screams that he knew anything was wrong. He ran to the front of the house and, to his horror, saw that his living room was on fire.

His only thought was to get to his wife and daughter, trapped upstairs. He ran into the house, the heat of the fire burning him. He vaguely heard sirens, one of his neighbors had the good sense to call 911, it seemed. He heard Alexis screaming his name. He tried to make his way up the stairs but the flames from the living room had quickly overtaken the staircase. He hurried down the hall to the kitchen hoping to go up the back stairs, but to no avail. He stood in the foyer calling for his wife, but her screams had long since died away. He was about to run headlong into the flames when a support beam crumbled and fell, hitting Erik and trapping him.

As he screamed in agony, the flames ate away the flesh of his face. He prayed for death, for he couldn't live in a world without his wife and child, knowing he had failed them. He had failed to protect them and he'd let them die!

But Erik was made of stronger stuff than to let his injuries kill him; he lingered in a coma for days, having suffered severe burns on his face and right side. His elderly butler, Stephan, and housekeeper, Marie, stayed by him in the hospital and through his recovery. His business partner and long time friend Nadir kept his business afloat, his military projects going and of course dealt with the funerals for Alexis and Madeline.

He hadn't the heart to tell his friend what had been found upstairs in the little girl's room. The trauma from the night was enough. Mercifully, Erik was still comatose when they buried his beloved wife and daughter. When he had finally awakened, Erik wouldn't speak for weeks. Nadir explained to him that the fire marshal had declared the fire an accident and no one was apprehended in the brick-throwing incident. The FBI had investigated it, fearing that members of the Al-Qaeda network or other terrorist group had been behind the attack but found no evidence of it. They speculated it was some young teenager, looking to cause a little trouble.

Nadir helped Erik rebuild his shattered life, though he found that while one could rebuild walls and buy new furniture, nothing could replace all that Erik had lost that night.

To make matters even worse, numerous attempts at skin grafts and plastic surgery could do nothing about Erik's devastated face. He was a monster, he'd promised to protect his family and he'd let them down…finally he had the face to go with the label.

Erik shot out of his chair, refusing to wallow any longer in self pity. It never got him anywhere but depressed and angry. Many tables and chairs had suffered because of his anguish. Nadir and Stephan no longer even raised an eyebrow when Erik would destroy every piece of furniture in a room.

After another round of pacing, Erik settled himself back at his desk, with all the upcoming months of physical therapy and doctor's appointments he would be unable to keep up with the demands of the job. The supervisor of Erik's section told him that if he decided to come back he need only ask. Erik was sure that he would never return.

Instead, he turned to his old profession…engineering and architecture. Because of his intelligence and skill, Erik Montgomery was a very rich man…very rich indeed. But what was wealth if you had no one with whom to share it?

Erik looked down at the numbers in front of him and forced his mind to his work, away from his past. Not before idly wondering what his mystery woman did, what her name was…

Christina threw her backpack on the floor next to the door and hit the play button on her answering machine. Of course her friend Megan had called to remind her they had a shopping date for the coming weekend, and her mother had called to say hello. Nothing out of the ordinary… just another day.

That evening it had rained a bit, not heavily, but enough to make the roads slick. At first, Christina thought about forgoing her run, but her need to be out and to rid herself of the nervous energy that seemed to take hold of her since Rodney's deployment refused to allow her a day's reprieve.

She tightened the Velcro on the bright yellow reflective belt that she always wore around her waist. Her shirt had reflective lettering and symbols on it, but she never took any chances for distracted drivers to not see that. It was hard to miss the bright, neon yellow belt around her waist, even in the dark. Taking care to make sure her shoes were tied tight, she set off on her normal route.

Even though she listened to music while she ran, she never had it on loud enough to drown out the sounds around her. She was surprised by the car that passed her, a silver Mercedes SUV. A vehicle like that was not uncommon in this neighborhood, but it was odd to see any cars on this road this late in the evening. As she was coming up to her favorite house, she was unaware at the forces at work around her.

Erik was just stepped out of his Mercedes SUV; he'd passed his runner on the road, which had filled him with a tension that he couldn't pinpoint. He'd had a rare dinner meeting with some potential clients and Nadir. For his friend's sake, he had suffered the sidelong glances and rude stares. He was pulling his briefcase out of the back when he heard his runner approach his driveway. His first impulse was to hurry inside, but he couldn't move. He had to see her.

He noticed with slight interest that the family who lived across the street from him had just returned home with their three children who were screaming, happy to be out of the confines of the family mini-van. It was then that everything seemed to happen at once…

The youngest child had wandered away from her squabbling parents, toddling down the driveway and out into the street as she chased a small rabbit, giggling in happiness as she did. Then he saw her, in all her glory and beauty… and then he saw the rapidly approaching headlights. He heard the squealing of brakes as they locked up, then a dull thud, and then the screaming began. He tore down his driveway, his own insecurities about being seen in public forgotten as he saw his runner lying on the pavement, clutching the screaming little girl to her chest.

As the driver got out of the car and the child's mother approached, Erik came to a halt next to Christina's still form. His heart was in his throat as he bent down to see.

Christina felt the baby struggling against her. With a groan, she released the child so she could run to her hysterical mother, who promptly scooped the little girl up and hugged her to her chest. Christina tried to push herself off the pavement, but felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and heard a voice of pure seduction telling her to remain still, that an ambulance was on its way.

She opened her eyes slowly and found herself staring into the most beautiful and unique golden/green eyes she'd ever seen.


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn't until that moment that she felt the burning on her leg, elbows and the stabbing pain that shot through her every time she took in a breath. One look at odd angle of her hand told her that the wrist was broken or at least fractured. Adrenaline had coursed through her when she'd seen the car heading straight for the child. But now, after lying on the cold pavement for a while, the adrenaline high was dying and pain was invading her body. She gave a wry chuckle, her Drill Sergeants had always told her that pain was weakness leaving the body. Well there was a mass exodus from her body at the moment.

She groaned audibly. Every part of her body hurt. She closed her eyes for a moment, but opened them again when she heard that magnificent voice. Who was this man?

"Are you alright?" the voice asked.

"I'm not sure yet, but I think so," she finally managed to choke out. She tried to use her good hand to push herself up, regretting it almost immediately as her head spun and her stomach lurched. She almost fell back to the concrete, but a pair of strong hands held her upright.

"Careful! You could have internal bleeding or something! I told you the paramedics are on their way, so please don't try to move until they arrive and check you out!" the concerned voice said with a note of panic.

"I'll live," she replied weakly.

She rubbed at her eyes, hoping the fog around her brain would lift. After a moment it did, and she saw that a crowd of people had gathered around her. She couldn't identify any of them, but at least she was starting to gather her wits. She once again tried to get up, but a sharp burning pain stabbed through her leg. She never made it off the pavement. She sucked in her breath in a low hiss, the only external sign of her pain.

Erik held her still. "What's your name?" he asked, finally.

"Christina Davies." She took a few deep breaths. Deep breathing had always helped her to calm herself. She was able to really look around and see what was going on. She could see the child appeared to be unhurt except for a scraped knee. She'd taken most of the abuse herself from the moving vehicle. A man she assumed to be the driver, an older man, was looking down at her with horror in his eyes. He'd not had enough time to react when the child had darted into the street. With the rain-slick roads, he had been helpless to avoid hitting the woman who had dashed out into the street and caught the child to her just as the bumper hit her.

She'd been flipped up onto the hood by the impact and had rolled back onto the pavement. Keeping the child clutched to her chest, she had curled her body around the little girl, trying to take the brunt of the impact and spare the little one. Well she'd succeeded…

They heard sirens and a moment later an ambulance and police car came to a screeching halt. Christina clutched with her good hand at the arm that immobilized injured hand. She feared and hated doctors and hospitals…with a passion. She was not getting into that ambulance and being taken to a hospital if she could help it!

Erik looked down in surprise at the strength in the hand that clutched his own. What also surprised him was the look of absolute terror in her pain-filled eyes. As the paramedics bombarded her with questions she withdrew into herself, going silent. When they attempted to insert an IV, she went nuts! She pushed them away, forcing herself to her feet while ignoring the pain in her leg and hip.

"No! No needles, I'm fine I don't need an IV! I don't need a hospital, and I don't need a doctor!" she shouted.

The EMT tried to reason with her, as did the police officer who was speaking to all the witnesses. Christina backed away from the uniformed men, limping as she did. When they saw her 'Army' t-shirt and shorts they backed off a bit.

"Are you in the Army, Ms. Davies?" one of them asked, trying to get her to relax and trust them

"Yes I am. Please, just let me go home. I'll be fine!" she pleaded.

"Ms. Davies you have lacerations on your legs, arms and side, a fractured wrist and possible internal injuries. We highly recommend that you please let us take you to the hospital for x-rays."

Christina shook her head, tears filling her eyes. She was only vaguely aware of the arm around her waist, keeping her on her feet. Slowly she became aware of the lean, strong body next to hers and the scent of cologne invading her senses. She felt her body was on edge. Where his skin touched hers, it felt like she was on fire. She had never responded to Rodney like this!

She looked up at her mysterious rescuer, who she found was looking down at her concern in his eyes. What wonderfully beautiful eyes he had!

"Ms. Davies, you really do need medical care," he whispered softly to her.

She was about to say she couldn't afford medical care, but his voice…that voice made her think twice. Without a thought to what she was doing, she realized how much pain she was in and suddenly felt exhaustion…most likely shock was setting in. She gave no thought to what she was saying. "Only if you come with me to the hospital!"

She felt him jerk back in surprise, felt the tension in his hard body before he nodded curtly to her. She thought she could handle the discomfort of the hospital if this man, this stranger was by her side.

Erik was kicking himself the moment he agreed to accompany her. What in God's name was he thinking! He very nearly set her in the ambulance and left, but saw the look in her deep green eyes…the look of absolute trust. How could he betray that? With a deep breath he climbed in with her, not once breaking contact with her hand.

The lengthy ride to the hospital was spent in an awkward silence. The EMT who was monitoring Christina noticed her increasingly pale face with a touch of worry. The man riding with her looked about as bad, though he continually stroked the back of her uninjured hand. Once they were enroute, Brad, the EMT, had managed to convince the girl to let him give her something for the pain he knew she had to be experiencing. Between the painkiller and the movement of the ambulance she mercifully fell asleep.

The only thing Christine was aware of when she woke up was the strong smell of medicine…she hated that smell! She forced her heavy eye lids open, her vision blurry as she looked around her small room. She moved to push herself up and discovered she had a cast on her left hand; she forced her body into full consciousness as she took in her surroundings.

She was alone in a hospital room, her left leg was bandaged up and she could feel the cuts and bruises on it as she moved. Her side felt like someone had hit her with a sledgehammer. '_Well it could have been worse,' _she thought to herself. Glancing down at her arm, she saw the dreaded IV in her hand. Without thinking, she yanked it out and moved to get off the bed that she felt was less comfortable than the pavement she'd hit after being hit by the car.

Immediately a nurse and two men came running into her room, the nurse looking at her irritably. One of the men she recognized instantly…her mystery man, funny…she never did find out his name. And next to him was a dark skinned man who looked a bit harassed.

The nurse began berating her for tearing out her IV. But Christina would hear none of it!

"I don't care! I don't want anymore pain medication, I want to go home and sleep in my own bed in my own home!"

The nurse bristled at Christina's harsh tone. "Now listen her, young lady, you can't just waltz out of here all high and mighty! You need medical care!"

Christina began hunting for her clothes. Spotting them folded up on a chair in the corner, she slowly and painfully made her way over and picked up her shirt.

"I'm going home; you can't force me to stay here! I'll sign whatever damned waiver I need to, to get me out of here! I'm not a child and I can take care of myself, thank you very much!" she snapped at the nurse.

Before the women started for each other's throats, Erik stepped in, trying to hide his amusement at Christina's attitude. "Perhaps it would help if I vouch for her well-being?"

The nurse looked from Erik to Christina to Erik again. "I'll get the doctor," she mumbled angrily as she stormed from the room.

Christina shot a triumphant look after her and shooed the men out of the room so she could change. AS she was shoving her feet into her sneakers she heard someone clear their throat…her mystery man.

"You're acting a bit brashly, don't you think?"

"No, I hate hospitals and I'll heal faster eating my own cooking and sleeping in my own bed. I'm fine, really." She hated it that she winced as she finished the sentence.

Erik chuckled "Of course you are, my dear." He sat in the chair next to her bed, taking great care not to touch her or look her in the eye. When he'd held her hand and touched her after the accident, he'd thought he'd die of the all-consuming desire that had ripped through his body.

Christina managed a weak grin. "You never did tell me your name…mystery man!"

"Erik, Erik Montgomery," he said, after a few moments of silence.

"Well thank you Mr. Mont-" She was interrupted by him. "Erik, please!"

"Alright, Erik. Thank you for riding here with me. You must think I'm a total nut for having a complete stranger ride with me to the hospital."

Erik found the blush creeping up her cheeks quite endearing. He had to fight the urge to pull her frail looking form into his arms. She looked so battered and bruised; it killed him to see her in so much pain. His beautiful runner…his beautiful Christina…

"Not at all. It would be quite frightening to be in the situation you were in."

Christina pushed herself off the bed as the doctor came running in with the dark skinned man close behind him.

"Ms. Davies, I have to say I'm not sure I like the idea of you leaving." He put up a hand to silence her when she opened her mouth to argue. "But Mr. Khan here has vouched for your safety on Mr. Montgomery's behalf, so there is little I can do." He produced a stack of papers for her to sign, explaining each one as he went.

"Alright, looks like everything is in order. Take care of yourself, Ms. Davies. Oh, and give this," he handed her a packet, "To your company commander. It contains my instructions as your primary physician regarding any physical activity you may be required to do during your drill weekends. You need to take it easy for a month or so."

Again he silenced her arguments. "That means no running for at least two months, and it will be longer than that before you'll be able to do any upper body exercises such as push-ups or the like."

Her lips in a thin line she nodded tersely "Fine, whatever, can I go PLEASE?"

He nodded. "You're free to go, take care."

She offered him a small smile. "Thank you doc."

With her head held high she limped out of the room. Erik left Nadir to take care of any loose ends and gathering paperwork and her discharge papers while he hurried after her. He caught up to her at the doors.

"Ms. Davies!" he called out.

She turned back to him. "Christina," she said as he approached her.

Slightly out of breath, he nodded "Very well." He paused to catch his breath. "Christina, can I give you a ride home?"

Well damn…she hadn't thought that far yet. Erik could see from her hesitation that she in fact did not have a way to get home. Having noticed how stubborn she was, she most likely would have walked!

"Allow me, it's the least I can do."

"No, I don't want to be a burden. Lord knows I've taken you away from…well from whatever, for long enough!"

"I assure you, it's no bother." He placed a tentative hand on her shoulder before jerking it back as though he'd been burned…_foolish man!_ His mind raged at him.

"Alright, if you're sure it's not a problem," she said after a moment.

"It's no problem at all," he assured her once more.

"Cool!" She followed him, refusing to let him help her into the vehicle. She gave him directions to her townhouse. He was surprised to find out his runner lived only two miles down the road from his home!

As he drove, she let her head fall back against the seat. She was exhausted and in more pain then she'd care to admit. She just wanted to go home, curl up in bed and sleep!

Erik pulled into her driveway and got out to assist her into the house. She'd no sooner stepped out of the car when she heard a voice call.

"Christina!"

She turned around looking for the voice, her heart jumped to her throat when she saw two Marines approaching her.


	3. Chapter 3

She heard blood pounding in her ears, her breathing slowed and for a moment she felt that time was standing still. She recognized the Marine who had called her name. He was James Berry, Rodney's friend. Everyone called him Jamie. He and Rodney had gone through Boot Camp together and had spent a lot of time with each other. Jamie's wife, Jackie, was one of Christina's good friends and had been a constant source of comfort and support since Rodney had been in Afghanistan. The other Marine, older and more distinguished looking, looked very serious but said nothing, his lips drawn in a grim line.

Jamie and the older man came to a halt in front of Christina and Erik. The older man looked from Erik to Christina, then back at Erik.

"Ms. Davies?"

She nodded.

"I am Major Christopher Scott." He paused, seeing her bruised and battered looking body, he wondered if now was really a good time. He decided they might as well just get it over and done with. "May we come inside?"

Christina nodded, forgetting Erik was there until she felt his hand on hers. Looking up into his eyes, she silently begged him to follow her inside. The depth of pain that he saw in her eyes shocked Erik. He realized that she knew something had happened but he hadn't a clue what it might be.

With shaking hands, Christina opened the door to her townhouse and invited the three men into the living room.

"Sit…" she began, but her voice broke. "Please have a seat."

Erik helped her to the sofa, easing her onto the soft cushions carefully, not wishing to hurt her more than necessary. Major Scott and Jamie sat on the love seat across the coffee table from Christina and Erik. The older man took a deep breath, looking down at his clenched hands before looking into Christina's eyes.

"Ms. Davies, I understand that you are Gunnery Sergeant Rodney Jackson's fiancé. Is this correct?"

She nodded, not trusting her voice for anything right now. _Please God! Not Rodney, not now! Please…_

He took a breath. "I'm sorry to inform you that he…" He stopped, wincing. The word 'he' made this o impersonal; he was speaking of her fiancé, someone's son, someone's brother…"Rodney was killed four days ago in the line of duty."

She was hearing the words that she'd feared for so long. Time stood still again, and as she looked around her living room, she didn't see the two Marines or Erik. She saw Rodney, pulling her to his lap and tickling her, kissing her, giving her a small smile that only she would see as he stepped onto a plane that took him away to war. She saw him standing in the bleachers at her Basic Training Graduation, applauding and saluting her. She saw the man she had been going to marry, the man she had loved more than anyone on the earth, holding her in his arms, and kissing her passionately, without a care in the world.

Jamie rose from the loveseat and squatted in front of her, taking her uninjured hand in his own.

"Christ, I'm so sorry Chris!" he choked, his own voice failing him. He looked at the floor so no one would see the tears that threatened to fall.

"If you need anything, anything at all," he said, before finally looking into her tragic green eyes. He would never forget the pain in those emerald depths, the look of total and utter heartbreak and despair. He heard his superior officer clear his throat and kissed her forehead once before standing up and moving slightly behind the Major.

Christina felt the tears begin to fall. Her Rodney…her brave, kind Rodney was gone forever. He would never again laugh, or cry or tickle her. She would never be his wife, never have his children. She would never hear his voice saying 'I love you' again.

She looked up at the two uniformed men who were standing in her living room. She saw the look of pain on Jamie's face and the look of discomfort on the Major's.

"Where is his body now?"

She listened with half an ear as Major Scott gave her the details, He explained that she was the sole beneficiary of his life insurance policy and mentioned Rodney's s last wishes.

'Thank you' was all she was able to say after the Major fell silent. She closed her eyes and sobbed.

Major Scott and Jamie took that as their cue to leave. Jamie left his cell number along with the number for her to call about Rodney's body and funeral proceedings. Unable to speak, she nodded once and slumped back against the sofa cushions, leaving Erik to silently show the men out.

She'd entirely forgotten he was there until he returned to the living room. She opened her mouth to say something but she couldn't utter a sound except a strangled wail. As her tears fell freely, Erik seated himself silently on the sofa next to Christina.

What could he say? Judging by the violence of her reaction to the news, he figured Rodney must have been her husband, His mind flashed back to a morning three years ago when he had awakened in a hospital room…

He forced himself to focus on the devastated young woman next to him.

Feeling useless, Erik debated whether he should touch her. He wanted so badly to pull her to him for comfort and wipe away her tears. But he knew that it wouldn't help. Her heart-wrenching pain couldn't be diminished by words or hugs.

He put a hand softly on her shoulder in a comforting gesture. She looked up into his eyes while the emerald depths of her own begged him to make it all go away. After a moment, she let her head fall to his shoulder. More violent sobs began shaking her body. Erik knew she needed some kind of comfort, even though he was out of practice at offering much of anything to another human being, he put his arms around her and held her to him gently, taking care not to further injure her already battered body.

She clutched at him, as a drowning man grabs hold of his rescuer. Erik felt her heart-breaking sobs down in his very soul. He held her as she cried; as she sobbed into his shoulder he began to hum ever so softly. Finally her body-shaking sobs diminished to hiccups.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice still thick with tears.

"You are more than welcome." He produced a folded linen handkerchief and gently blotted her tears.

Damn! Why had he even come in the door with the Marines? He was no good at offering comfort to another human being! He was so out of practice in dealing with the opposite sex!

He finally asked the question he'd been dreading. "Was he your husband?"

She shook her head.

"No, he was my fiancé." She sniffed. "We were supposed to have been married a year ago, but he was unexpectedly deployed to Afghanistan two days before our wedding day."

Erik tried to release her but she clutched him tightly

"Please…" The tears started again. "Please don't leave me!" she cried.

_No, I don't ever want to leave you…_

He held her small body to him, stroking her hair and face. He tried to remember what else might calm her. He started rocking her…Madeline used to love it when he rocked her.

_Damn!_

He had known this woman for a day and in the 24 hours since she'd met him she'd been hit by a car and told her fiancé was killed.

When her breathing evened out and he realized she had fallen asleep, he picked her up, being careful not to jar her and cause her any more pain. He carried her upstairs to the only bedroom where he set her on her bed and pulled gently away from her grip. Carefully, he draped a blanket over her before silently making his way out of her room. He debated with himself whether he should remain, but finally decided she needed to rest undisturbed. He went downstairs to write her a note.

When she woke some time later, her face felt stiff and her body protested every move she made, her muscles and her very bones screaming in pain. Then she remembered everything that had happened…

Tears burned the back of her eyes before they began to fall one by one. Erik was gone as she knew he would be. She was totally alone. The thought crossed her mind that she should take him a bottle of wine or something as a thank you.

Slowly she hobbled out of her room and down the stairs to the kitchen. On the counter were two pieces of paper. One of them contained all the instructions concerning Rodney, and the other appeared to be a note.

_**Christina,**_

_**I'm so very sorry for your loss; if you need anything please don't hesitate to call! **_

_**Erik (412 )555-9345**_

Through the tears Christina smiled a tiny smile. It would be the last one to grace her beautiful face for a long while.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Because he'd been killed in the line of duty, Rodney was buried with full military honors, complete with a 21-gun salute and the Air National Guard flying overhead. At the conclusion of the service, Christina was presented with the traditional folded American flag.

Rodney had no family, but he did have a lot of friends. Jamie and Jackie had stood by Christina, one on each side, with their arms around her, tears streaming down both of their faces. Everyone else had come to pay their last respects to their fallen comrade and extended their condolences to Christina. A few offered to bring over food, to stop by and check on her, but she kindly refused them all. She just wanted to be left alone.

She hobbled into her empty townhouse, clutching the flag. She'd not shed one tear since the day she had been told of Rod's death. Dry-eyed, she held the flag to her chest for a long while. She sat alone in the darkness of her townhouse, in silence, dressed in black and holding an American Flag.

If she'd overworked herself before Rodney died, she became a mad woman after his funeral. Her leg had nearly healed and her hip was greatly improved. A splint had replaced the cast on her wrist and she no longer walked with a limp. The cuts and bruises had faded.

She hardly slept, ate even less and worked herself daily to the point of exhaustion. She shed pounds she could ill afford to lose. She stayed on campus late before coming home and collapsing without dinner. Two months had passed and though she still felt some stiffness in her body she didn't allow it to hold her back any longer. She put on her running shoes and walked out her front door.

Left, right, left right….

Running had always helped her think, even though now she didn't want her lost love to creep into her thoughts. She wanted her mind to be free…free of any thoughts of love, men, romance, life, as it used to be…

She was done with all of that! She would finish her degree because Rodney had wanted her to, she would get a job and she would work. But never again would she let herself love…she couldn't. Love hurt too much. No, she would never open herself up to that kind of pain again…she didn't think her heart could take it.

Every evening Erik had watched out his office window for any sign of Christina, but for the past two months he'd seen nothing of her. Nor had he heard from her, though that wasn't entirely unexpected. After all, with what he had become, who would want to talk to him, let alone look at him?

With sad eyes, he his daily watch for just a glimpse of her. But it was not to be. She didn't come.

He had attempted to bury his thoughts of her deep within himself, to forget all about her. But there was something about her, something so tragic, so magnetizing and enticing that he couldn't put her out of his mind. She was so independent…to a fault almost. She had been so beautiful to him when she had cried on his shoulder, even though she was covered with cuts and bruises. The sound of her sobs had nearly killed him, but it had been even harder on him when she was silent and withdrawn. Someone as beautiful as she should have been laughing and smiling, and not having to deal with tragedy. Even though he'd finally first met her on that tragic day, for months before he had seen her utter loneliness as she ran by each day. It had surrounded her almost line a cloud. He had wanted nothing more than to lift the weight of her loneliness from her shoulders. He wondered if she had recovered physically from the accident and how she was coping emotionally with the loss of her finance'. Her continued absence led him to believe that she must be trying to move on with her life, to forget everything about the fateful day they had finally met.

And then, just when he had given up hope…

He saw reflectorized fabric gleaming in the lamplight at the corner of his driveway and he gasped aloud when he saw her. It couldn't be his Christina…this thin girl must be an imposter. But she was coming up his driveway! He bolted out the office door and down the stairs just as the doorbell rang.

Stephan opened the door for the young lady and ushered her in. He thought he recognized her from his master's descriptions, but this girl before him was a mere shadow of the girl that Erik seemed to have fallen in love with…

When Erik reached the bottom of the stairs, Christina had just come into the foyer. He looked closely at her and was dismayed by what he saw. Her eyes were no longer bright and vibrant, but dull, with dark circles under them. Though she was wearing baggy clothes, Erik could see she had lost a great deal of weight since he had last seen her. He was shocked at the condition she was in. He wondered when she had last eaten a real meal or had a full night's sleep. He greeted her tentatively, and led her into one of the two parlors on the bottom floor. He gestured for Stephan to bring refreshments immediately.

"No, no, please don't go to any trouble on my account… I don't want anything! I'm so sorry I haven't called… I've been meaning to but…" She stopped, unable to continue. "I have a bottle of wine for you. I wanted you to have it in appreciation for everything you did that day. I hadn't planned on stopping this evening. I was planning to drive over with the wine. I haven't gotten to it yet." She knew she was rambling. Christina looked down at her running clothes and suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. This man had never seen her in regular clothes…she always seemed to look a mess. "And I would not have been dressed like a bum!"

"You don't need to feel that you have to dress for me, Christina." _Where the hell had that come from?_ He raged at himself. _I'm no good at this anymore_…

"Well maybe I could bring the wine by later this week?" she asked, hesitantly.

_Stupid, stupid! Chris! What the hell are you trying to do to yourself? Stay away from here!_

She wanted to dart out of the room. She didn't want to get to know the man across from her. She didn't want to be his friend, didn't want to know about his life, his hurts…she didn't want to let anyone else in. Because if she let anyone in they could hurt her, and she couldn't handle hurt like that again.

But then she looked into his eyes, those beautiful eyes, and she saw a world of pain. A pain that matched her own, the pain and devastation of losing your world…horrible, debilitating loss. She wondered for a moment what had happened to him…what event in his life made this man into the tragic form sitting before her.

No! She didn't want to know! She couldn't, it would kill her!

Erik watched as a myriad of emotions played over her face.

_She doesn't realize how much she reveals with her eyes._

She turned her eyes back to his own and gazed deeply, into his very soul. He cast his eyes to the floor, ashamed for her to see the truth…to see the monster he had become.

Christina knew that if she stayed any longer she would regret it. She mumbled an excuse and fled the room, nearly colliding with Stephen and his tray of food and beverages, She ran out the door and sprinted down the curved driveway, through the gates and away own the road. Two months ago she would have killed for a look around the grand mansion that was Erik's home, but now all she could think of was escaping. She had seen his pain and sadness, which seemed to rival her own.

Erik stood in his open doorway and watched her go…

Every day he continued to watch for her to pass by; every day he sank further and further into despair. He frequently drove by her townhouse, but never saw her. It seemed as though she had disappeared from the face of the earth. Erik threw himself more than ever into his work, determined to banish the beautiful brunette from his thoughts. She had captured his interest and had begun to awaken hope in his heart. Then she had experienced both the accident and the tragedy of losing her finance', and she had vanished.

In resignation, he rebuilt the crumbling walls around his heart and reinforced them, even stronger than before. Erik was certain he would never see her again, and he didn't, for nearly a year…


	4. Chapter 4

Nadir observed helplessly as Erik threw himself into a deep pit of depression and self-loathing. He knew it had something to do with that woman, Christina Davies, the poor dear! He had felt terrible when Erik had come home and told him her fiancé had been killed. Erik had locked himself away in his music room and hadn't emerged for two days. Nadir wondered what had become of her; they hadn't seen her or heard from her in over a year.

Christina looked around at her home. She hadn't been there in twelve months. After Rodney's death she'd had to get away, everywhere she looked she saw little touches of him and felt as though she was suffocating. So, she ran, away from her memories and from him…

She had finally decided to change her job in the Army or be reclassed, as it was called in 'Army-ese'. She spent nearly a year in school, thinking of nothing but her training. Every morning during PT she ran the hardest and pushed herself the farthest. Her superiors kept a cautious eye on her. They'd heard about her 'situation' and made sure she didn't do anything stupid. Captain LeChance watched as she pushed herself harder each day, but knew that she had to overcome her grief in her own way. He also knew that she couldn't hide from her pain, as much as she wanted to. She couldn't.

A war veteran, Captain LeChance knew very well the pain of losing friends, friends so close they were the same as family. He'd buried too many loved ones…it never got easier, especially since they seemed to be getting younger and younger every time he turned around! Specialist Davies couldn't be more than 24, and he knew her fiancé had been her age. So young to be hurt so much! But everyone had lost 'someone' in the war. As huge as the Army may seem, it's really a relatively small community…it hurt.

When she achieved her goal, he asked her what she planned on doing. With a weary heart she replied, "I want to go home."

And home is where she stood; everything was as she left it. Nothing was out of place, she loved it…she hated it. It was as if he hadn't existed, as if he hadn't died.

She pushed those thoughts away as she set about unpacking. Once she was settled in again, she was rummaging through her kitchen when she found something…something she'd forgotten about. She picked up the bottle of wine, and considered it for a time. Then, impulsively, she grabbed her keys, and hurried over to Erik's. Her year away had changed her thoughts somewhat about how she would live the rest of her life. She had discovered while she was away that, in her mind, her memory of Rodney's face had slowly, every so slowly, turned into Erik's…. Rodney's curly blonde mop had become Erik's straight black hair, falling over his forehead slightly and just brushing the edge of his pristine white mask.

Lord how she'd missed him!

She'd thought a lot about Rodney. She would never forget him. But the realization that he wasn't coming back had really, truly sunk in. She also knew he would hate to see her like this, pale and thin and miserable. He'd tell her to get off her lazy ass and go enjoy life like she used to…so that's what she had decided to do. One baby step at a time.

She smoothed her pants out nervously. She hadn't seen Erik since she'd bolted from his home that night, and she hadn't given him one clue about where she had been

Stephan answered the door, and was pleasantly surprised when he saw Christina. But this young woman looked much healthier and happier than the one he remembered. He ushered her to the parlor and asked her to wait there while he fetched Erik. She waited tensely, wondering if he would be angry with her for just up and leaving for no reason and with no warning…

Erik clenched and unclenched his fists nervously outside the parlor doors. It had been a year since he'd seen her last and much had changed and yet nothing had changed. Taking a breath he entered the room. Christina rose off the edge of the sofa on which she had been perched.

"Erik, hi. Um…" she stuttered nervously before thrusting the bottle of wine at him. "A thank you, for everything you did for me that day."

Erik took the bottle from her.

"Thank you, my dear, though you needn't do this…" his voice trailed off. She looked good, scratch that, she looked amazing!

Christina shifted her weight from one foot to the other nervously.

"I wanted to, I didn't properly thank you. It was rude of me."

He opened his mouth to argue but she cut him off.

"No, please, just let me do this!"

Erik shut his mouth and nodded, keeping his eyes on the wine in his hands.

"Would you like some?" he asked, holding up the bottle.

She nodded.

"Sure, it's my favorite. I didn't know what you liked, so I just got that and hoped." She gave him a small smile that lit up her entire face.

"I'm sure I'll love It." He disappeared from the room and returned moments later with a corkscrew and two wine glasses.

He poured her a glass and handed it to her before pouring one for himself. They sat in a rather uncomfortable silence as they sipped the wine. Finally, Erik managed to break the silence.

"You are well?"

"Yes" She took a sip of wine, knowing he wanted to know where she had been but was timid to ask. "I was away, I changed my job in the Army so I was at Fort Lee in Virginia. I left here the day I graduated." She smiled wryly "I didn't even stick around for the actual graduation ceremony; I just packed my stuff in my car and drove to Virginia."

Erik could well understand the need to flee, that's what he'd tried to do after he recovered from the fire.

"I understand, more than you will ever know." _Damn! Why must I say such stupid things!_

Christina wanted to ask what he meant by that, but the look in his eyes told her not to She set her empty glass down and sat back in her chair.

"I didn't mean to take off without a word, but it just seemed easier for me at the time."

"You have no need to explain to me, my dear. I'm not your parent."

The last line had been a bit harsh; she was more than surprised at the hurt that was infused in his words. She didn't want to dwell on it for too long.

It appeared to her that Erik didn't want her around, and stood.

"Well, I um…I should get going, I guess," she mumbled.

Erik mentally kicked himself; he'd had no right to speak to her like that! He was on his feet quickly.

"Ms. Davies! Wait"

_Ms. Davies…when did I stop being Christina and go to Ms. Davies. Is this the man who held me after I was hit by the car? The man who comforted me when I found out about Rodney? Where did that tender, caring man go? _She wondered. _Did my leaving hurt him that much? Now you flatter yourself! _Her mind raged at her. _You assume that you meant something to him to begin with; he's just a nice man! Move on sister!_

But it wasn't that easy. He looked so sad and so alone. She wanted to help. She may never fall in love with a man again, but that didn't stop her from being a friend to the tragic man in front of her. She looked at him, almost afraid to look into his eyes, afraid to see what emotions were swirling around inside those unique orbs.

"Forgive me my dear. I had no right to speak to you so harshly."

She smiled sweetly at him.

"There's no need to apologize Er-Mr. Montgomery" _Fine if he wants to play Mr. Withdrawn and aloof I can play that game too! _"I left without a word to anyone. After everything you did it was very ungrateful of me."

When he did not respond, she turned and left. Erik could hardly believe that she had come to see him, willingly! She even apologized for not saying goodbye when she left, though he could hardly blame her! Attempting to not put too much thought into her actions, Erik returned to his music room and allowed his music to take him over, it was the only outlet he had these days so he took what little relief it offered him.

As Christina unpacked the rest of her belongings she thought about the tragic Erik Montgomery. On a whim, she'd done an Internet search on his name while she was down in Virginia and she'd found out some very interesting things about this man. She read about the fire which claimed the life of his wife and daughter and explained the curious white mask he always wore on his face. It also explained the air of tragedy and pain that surrounded him and manifested itself in his eyes. It explained the odd attraction and connection that she'd felt to him, they'd both loved and lost a great deal.

Christina wondered if he had any real 'friends' that he could talk to. Her close friends, Jackie and Meg, had been her salvation in the past months. They wouldn't allow her to sink too deeply into the depression that had tried to take hold of her in the weeks and months after Rodney's death. Even still, they pestered her and kept her social calendar quite full though they were both smart enough to 'not' set her up with any men. Both wisely assumed she hadn't completely gotten over Rodney and his sudden death.

If she wanted his friendship, Christina would have to move slowly with Erik, lest she push him even further away from her then he already was.

She was back! He could hardly believe that she'd come back, or that she had let him know of her return. For so long he'd contented himself with watching her from his window, but now that he'd had a taste of her companionship, he wanted more!

At first Erik tried not to think too much of her return. He buried himself in his work, barely eating or sleeping. Nadir and Stephan had long ago given up trying to reason with Erik when he got like this. It was easier to let him be and pick up the pieces later. Nadir hoped that this woman could perhaps help heal Erik's shattered heart. He knew he was a good man who had a great deal to offer someone, if he was just given a chance. If they could just see past his face and his dreadful temper.

It was a small step, but a step nonetheless. Every day after her run, Christina would stop by Erik's house. For the first week or so she'd stayed for only a few minutes. But she and Erik soon became a bit more comfortable with each other so some nights she would stay for an hour or so, and then Erik would graciously offer to drive her home. She would gently refuse, saying she needed the exercise. It was a comfortable routine for both of them since each was afraid to let the other get too close.

They kept everything light and cheerful between them, he steering clear of his past and she staying away from any talk of love or men. It was during this time that Christina discovered that Erik could sing…

Erik opened the door to the music room cautiously, he'd been showing her around his home and this was the last room of the house. She gasped when she saw the beautiful grand piano in the center of the room.

"Mr. Montgomery, do you play?"

He frowned; she still called him 'Mr. Montgomery' just as he refused to call her by her Christian name.

"Yes."

She looked up at him.

"Will you do me the honor?"

Unable to deny her anything, he walked to the piano and sat down. Christina loved to watch him do anything; his tall 6'2 frame moved so gracefully and effortlessly that it was almost breathtaking. She settled herself in one of the many overstuffed chairs in the room and watched as his long fingers caressed the ivory keys. She shivered when she briefly imagined his fingers on her body.

_Where in the hell did 'that' come from?_

She thought no more of it when she heard the first notes. The music he created surrounded her like a blanket, so tangible that she felt she could wrap herself up in it. The notes poured effortlessly from his fingers. As the last notes died away, she began to applaud.

"That was exquisite! I've never heard anyone produce music like that!"

"Thank you, my dear. It was one of my own compositions."

She laughed.

"Is there anything you're not good at?" she teased.

"There are many things in this world I haven't yet attempted," he retorted, "For example, I haven't joined the military, nor am I ever likely to,"

Christina grinned,

"It's not for everyone. But weren't you a civilian contractor for the military at one time?"

His face grew serious.

"I never told you about that. How did you know that?"

_Damn, stupid, stupid, Christina! _

Her face paled slightly; there would be no escaping the question now. Before she could open her mouth to answer, Erik turned his back on her. "Please leave." His voice was but a ragged whisper.

She rose and moved to put her hand on his shoulder, but he turned back toward her, his eyes burning with rage."Get out!"

Christina could take no more; she turned and marched out of the music room with her head held high. She didn't want him to see the hurt in her eyes from his rejection. She knew she shouldn't have let him know that she knew more about him then he had shared with her, but she couldn't understand why he was so angry. She hoped that in time he would tell her…she hoped he'd allow her to see him again, period.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I apologize for the delay in this chapter, I found that I had a bad case of writers block. I really want to do this story justice! Well here is the next chapter of my drama, enjoy. As always leave me a note!**

**Disclaimer:I don't own any original characters, however the characterizations and plotline in this story are all mine.**

For two weeks Christina stopped at Erik's house after her run, and for two weeks Stephan had to tell her that Mr. Montgomery was indisposed at the moment. By the last day, the old man saw a look of defeat in her emerald green depths. Perhaps her slip of the tongue had cost her his friendship after all. With a dejected sigh she gave a weary smile to the kind looking older man and turned to leave. She was stayed by a hand on her arm.

She looked over her shoulder to see Erik's business partner, Nadir watching her.

"Ms. Davies? If I may have a word?"

Eager to get her foot in the door, as it were, she nodded and followed him to a study on the second floor. He ushered her inside and closed the door, gesturing for her to sit in one of the plush chairs across from his desk.

"Ms. Davies," he began but was interrupted by Christina, "Please, call me Christina."

"Christina, I don't know what transpired between you and Erik, and frankly I don't want to know. That's between you and he. I know he is a horribly stubborn man, but given enough time, he will come around." He gave her a reassuring smile.

"Thank you Nadir, I just wish I knew what I did to make him so upset."

"He's said little about it to me."

She sank back in her chair, defeated. She figured if this man was to help her at all he deserved to know the story.

"It's no secret that Erik had been very kind to me. When I learned of my fiancé's death, I didn't know where to turn or what to do, so I escaped to the only refuge I could think of, my military training." She smiled wryly at the understatement. "But the entire time I was in Virginia, I thought of Erik constantly. In spite of all the pain I felt, I had seen even more in his eyes." She blushed, casting her eyes at her lap. "I did some…snooping on the internet and found articles about the fire and his wife and daughter."

She looked up at Nadir and noticed that the color had drained away from his cheeks. "Ah, well that may explain it"

Christina shook her head.

"I didn't say anything to him about it, I'm not completely insensitive!" she frowned "But I did make the mistake of remarking on the fact that had once been a civilian contractor for the military. As soon as I said that, he closed himself off from me!" She was nearly shouting, the anger giving her cheeks bright spots of color and her eyes were ablaze.

Nadir could see why Erik was so taken with her. "He despises any mention of his past; he's spent many years trying to burying it in his soul. I beg of you not to mention it again"

At that comment, she scowled at him.

"I'm not an idiot! I know that if I ever want him to trust me he needs to come to me on his own. It just slipped out"

Nadir studied her for a moment, trying to decide if she had any malicious intent. When he saw nothing but kindness in her eyes he knew she wouldn't hurt his broken friend.

"Why are you so desperate for him to trust you? To be friends with him?"

She blushed a crimson red.

"I'm not really sure, to be perfectly honest with you." She frowned as she thought about how to word her answer "He seems so sad, so tragic and I can relate to how he feels. I know all too well how quickly your life can be torn away from you. It's been over a year since my fiancé was killed in Afghanistan, and I've accepted his death, but that doesn't mean that I've recovered from the loss and shock." She passed a distracted hand over her forehead. "He's one of the only people I know who has an understanding of my pain," she said softly.

"Surely you have friends in the Army who have lost friends in the course of the war?" he prodded.

"Of course I do!" she retorted. "Everyone knows someone who's lost a loved one in this war!" She paused, attempting to calm her temper. "But no one else can feel my pain like Erik can. There is something about a tragedy shared harsh laugh that was devoid of mirth. "I didn't even have a connection like this to Rodney."

She got up and started pacing and Nadir had to resist the urge to laugh…how similar she was to Erik!

"I've not felt this compassion towards anyone else. I feel like he needs me, Nadir," she said after a few moments, looking at him.

"What does he need from you?" the dark skinned man asked softly.

"Friendship, companionship Lo-"she paused "Love"

"You will give him all those things?"

"No, I can't give him love." She gave him a bitter smile "I don't think I can love anyone anymore." She took a deep breath. "But I can be his friend and companion. I can show him there is more to life than these walls and that it's safe to trust someone."

Nadir felt a deep sadness for the young woman before him as she so confidently told him she couldn't love anyone. So young to be so sad!

"Be patient with him; he's been through more in his 35 years on earth than most people would endure in several lifetimes."

Christina sat back down, her face suddenly serious. "Nadir, what," she paused, unsure if she should continue. There was a look of warning behind Nadir's warm dark eyes. "What happened to his wife and daughter?"

"You said yourself, you read an article," he responded tensely.

"I know but I think you know more than you are telling me…" she prodded softly.

Nadir closed his eyes, not wanting to revisit those memories that still haunted his dreams. He'd known Alexis well, and was Madeline's godfather. It had devastated him to have to gather their remains and see to their funerals. It was even harder to not tell Erik, though he knew it was a small mercy at the time.

"I can't tell you." She started to protest, but was silenced by his sharp glance. "It was a tragedy, in every sense of the word. There is no point in stirring up old ghosts. Such a beautiful woman shouldn't have such grisly images in her mind," he ended softly, his eyes turning to his desktop.

"All right, I understand, and I promise you I won't ask again."

He could only nod, standing and moving from behind his desk. "Don't give up on him; he's been so far away from society for so long that he doesn't understand how to interact with people sometimes.

Christina nodded "I think I get it. Thank you, Nadir."

He patted her shoulder as a grandfather would. "You're a good girl, Christina. You'll be good for him." '_And he for you,' he_ thought to himself.

He showed her out of the house, inviting her to return for dinner the next night. She gave him a wary look; he laughed and told her to let him worry about Erik's wrath.

The next day went by rather slowly for Christina, so slowly that she was sure the clock in her classroom had stopped working. Since she'd returned home from her training, she'd put her teaching degree to use and found employment at one of the local elementary schools. Finally the school day ended. She was happy to see her students leave so she could rush home and prepare for dinner at Erik's home.

She knew he would be furious, of that she had no doubt. She only hoped he would listen to her. She dressed carefully not wanting to give anyone the wrong idea about her intentions towards him. She wanted his friendship and nothing more. So she figured she'd be safe in a pair of khakis and a teal blouse…it was more something she'd wear to a job interview, but at least it wasn't her work out clothes.

She arrived at his home promptly at five o'clock, Stephan grinned at her as he showed her to the dining room. She could hear Erik raging as they approached the door.

"You invited a stranger to my home for dinner! Have you gone mad!" he roared.

"It's not a stranger, but a business associate. I thought it would do you some good to start getting more personal with some of our accounts," Nadir replied calmly, apparently unmoved by Erik's temper.

"But to my house, my sanctuary! The only respite I have from this god-forsaken society and their staring and pity!" Erik was still yelling, though he appeared to have had some of the wind knocked out of his sails by Nadir's calm attitude.

"You'll live," Nadir responded.

"Very well." She smiled when she heard Erik's resigned mumble.

She held herself up tall and proud as she entered the room, and Stephan announced her as though she were royalty. "Ms. Christina Davies."

Nadir approached her to help her to her seat while Erik's eyes changed to a cold, stony gold/green.

"I find that I've lost my appetite," he said, before rising to his feet.

Christina half rose from her chair, as she looked helplessly at Nadir, unsure what to do, but he stepped in before she could say anything.

"Erik! You will sit down and enjoy supper with us like the civilized, charming man I know you to be! You're showing our guest horrible manners!"

She was surprised when instead of bellowing at Nadir; Erik sulkily threw himself back into his chair, not looking at Christina. She glanced at Nadir nervously; he nodded and gestured for her to sit as well. As she suspected he would, Erik remained silent throughout the various courses, glaring at Nadir and refusing to look at Christina. Finally she could take no more. Not one to sit back and suffer such injustice or disdain from anyone, she pushed her dessert plate aside and looked directly at Erik in challenge.

"Why do you ignore me? I thought you enjoyed my company!"

Erik stiffened in his chair when he heard her address him, what answer could he give?

"I do enjoy your company," he said after a moment of tense silence. Nadir silently crept out of the room, leaving the two hardheaded individuals to their battle of wills.

"Erik, please look at me," she pleaded.

It had been so long since he'd heard his name roll off her lips; it was like the sweetest music he'd ever heard. He lifted his eyes to hers, and was more than surprised at the tenderness and concern he saw in them.

"Erik I didn't mean to make you angry before, and I promise I'll not bring up the past again, if that's what you wish."

A tense nod was the only indication he heard her, she sat back for a moment trying to think of any way to get him to open up to her.

She figured honesty was the best way to go in this situation. Maybe if she told him how much she'd missed him and his friendship the past year, his chilly demeanor would thaw?

"I missed you Erik, while I was away. Sometimes I felt like no one understood me."

Erik allowed his lips to form a weak smile, but he said nothing. He could never admit to her how much he'd missed HER. How often he'd watched at his window, hoping for just a glimpse of her. He looked back to his own dessert plate, but pushed it away. He'd lost his appetite.

The man was infuriating! She was trying to get him to relax around her, and all she'd accomplished was making him more tight lipped! She wanted to scream! If sincerity wouldn't break through his reserve, maybe her anger would!

"Alright Erik," she said irritably, "I apologized for dredging up old ghosts; Lord knows we both have enough of them. I don't want to fight, or make you miserable. I want us to be friends' I need someone I can talk to and I think you need someone you can confide in. But I'm not going to be the one making all the compromises and walking on egg shells around you. I'm no good at it, and I'd most likely mess it up." She stood up, her hands fisted tightly at her sides. "But I won't beg for your attention or friendship. I have no ulterior motives nor am I a dishonest person. It's your choice now, you know where I live and you have my phone number."

With that said, she turned and stalked out of the dining room. Erik had not been prepared for her temper! He could only watch in awe as she left the room, her anger clearly written on her lovely face. A pang of guilt nagged at his mind. She'd done nothing but offer him friendship, and he'd responded with coldness and anger.

Would he forever be messing things up?

For a year, all he wanted was for her to return to his life, bring him the light he so desperately wanted. And as soon as she spoke of his past life he turned himself off to her completely. He knew if his wife had been alive she would be appalled at his treatment of his little soldier. He would make it up to her…he had to. He needed her like he needed air or music.

The next day Erik knew he had to make amends, something he'd never been particularly successful at.

Approaching her front door, his hands shaking and his heart pounding in his chest, he raised a trembling hand and knocked. For a moment, he thought she wouldn't answer the door, but that idea was dispelled when the front door was flung open and a triumphant Christina appeared in front of him.

"I'm surprised you came by so soon. I thought for sure you'd sit in your mansion and brood for at least a week!" she teased.

She stepped aside and gestured grandly, silently inviting him into her townhouse. Erik stepped inside, looking around nervously while he did. Christina laughed.

"I promise there's no one here who will jump out of the closet and murder you!" Her eyes twinkled in amusement. "I made sure I killed them all before you arrived!"

Erik chuckled at his foolishness, and at her calling him out on it.

"Touché," he murmured.

She led him to her dining room and set about pouring tea, not asking if he wanted any. As they waited for the tea to cool, Christina finally started to try to chisel away at the walls he'd constructed around himself.

"What is it that you do exactly, Erik?" she asked, as she stirred sugar into her tea.

"I'm an engineer; I work for Amber Petroleum Corporation designing dispensing systems and better purification systems."

"Cool! That's kind of up my alley, well in the Army, anyway."

Erik quirked a curious eyebrow before she continued, "I'm a Petroleum Supply Specialist."

"Interesting, I've worked with many Fuel Handlers in my past dealings with the Army."

As soon as he said, that he wished he hadn't. He'd made it perfectly clear that his past was strictly off limits. Now that he'd opened the door, he knew she would find her way through into his tragic past.

"Neat!" she said, taking a sip of her tea. She had so many questions that she wanted to ask, but knew Erik wasn't ready to answer them.

After an hour of idle chitchat, Erik excused himself and returned to his home. Upon his return, he received a very interesting phone call.

"Erik! How the hell are you?!" a booming voice asked.

Erik would know that voice anywhere; even though he hadn't heard from his former supervisor from the Pentagon in a while, he was glad to hear the cheerful voice on the other end of the phone.

"About the same as always Derek, and how about you?"

"Terrible! Which is why I called you." There was a pause. "I am again in need of your expertise, Erik. The Army wants to replace their current fuel dispensing system with something that is more cost efficient and requires less personnel." Derek paused, and when he heard no protests he continued, "I want you to head a team that will go to Afghanistan and work with a petroleum unit; use them as guinea pigs, if you will. You're the best, and that's what I need right now."

Erik rubbed the bridge of his nose; perhaps this was just what he needed. Get away from the monotony of his work here and away from Christina…maybe then he could try to figure out his feelings for her. On an impulse, he decided to take the offer.

"I'll do it! When would you need me to be ready to leave?"

"Great! You and your team will leave here on June 6th; you'll land outside of Kabul. There is a FOB set up there; you'll work out of there."

"Lovely," Erik muttered.

Derek laughed, "Well as far as Forward Operating Bases go, this one is damned cushy! It's in an old stone compound, it doesn't look like much but the rooms we've secured for you are fairly nice."

Erik snorted, "You and I have very different opinions on what is 'nice' and 'cushy', Derek!"

Laughter rang out. "Indeed, it's only for nine months, Erik. I'm sure you'll survive. You've lived in worse places than this for a lot longer!"

"True," Erik sighed, "Very well, I will be ready. I assume I can build my own team?"

"You know the drill. Have their resumes and background checks faxed to my office."

"Of course. Thank you Derek."

"No, it is I who should thank you. When you return, I'll take you to dinner to repay you for this favor."

"My choice of restaurant? It's a deal!"

They ended the call and Erik bellowed for Nadir, who came running.

"We're going to Afghanistan," was all Erik said.


	6. Chapter 6

The day started out innocently enough, Christina went to work, came home, made dinner and was just sitting down to her meal when the phone rang. Grimacing when she saw 'US Government' on the caller ID she knew it had to be her unit; she had no idea why they would be calling her now. They were most likely trying to get her to re-enlist, even though she'd been refusing for the past seven months, with her ETS(Estimated Termination of Service) date fast approaching they were scrambling to entice her to remain in the service.

"Hello?"

"Specialist Davies, Captain Travis here."

Just hearing her superior officer's voice made her straighten he posture.

"Yes sir?"

"Davies, I know not going to be happy, but…" there was a pause, "The unit's deploying to Afghanistan in eight weeks."

Was this someone's idea of a sick joke? She only had nine more months before she was out!

"I see…" was all she could think of saying.

"I know you ETS in January, but you know the drill." He sounded tired, which didn't surprise Christina at all. As far as Company Commanders went, Captain Travis was the best, always looking out for his troops and knowing each of his soldiers by name.

"Yeah, I do. It's part of signing on the dotted line, eh?"

"You got it. Anyway, you'll be receiving your orders via messenger sometime tomorrow but I wanted to call you and tell you personally. I know you may have…a conflict of interest."

"Sir, this is my job. It's what I signed up to do. I'm not afraid to do my duty."

The Captain chuckled softly.

"Well said, Davies. Remind me to have your section sergeant put you in for a merit award. We'll see you next month for your physicals, then?"

"Yes sir, thank you sir."

"Travis out." And the line went dead.

'_Well isn't that just bloody perfect!'_ she raged to herself. Getting mad about it would be counter-productive. She knew this day could come…she just didn't realize her call to war would come less than a year before she was done with the Army.

Two months, a lifetime to some people! But to Christina, those two months flew by faster than she could imagine. She only had time to stop by Erik's once, and was hurt to find that he had left for Washington and hadn't even told her. With a heavy heart, Christina left her townhouse in the care of her brother, who drove her to the airport.

For Christina, this scene at the airport was all too familiar. Only this time, instead of smiling bravely and waving at her only love as he went off to war, everything was reversed. For her brother, it wasn't a ladylove but his little sister who climbed aboard the plane and waved goodbye. Jason Davies left the airport with a feeling of dread; he could only pray that his baby sister would come home in one piece…and not in a wooden box.

She settled in her seat next to a nervous, wet-behind-the-ears private who was in the window seat. He had a look of shock and fear on his young face.

Christina switched herself off, in a sense. No longer was she a civilian; she was a soldier, and she had to keep it together for the sake of those serving under her. They were looking to her for guidance and strength. What she would never tell them was that she was as frightened as they were.

Her first impression of Afghanistan was different from what she had imagined. Though she hadn't really known what to expect, it certainly wasn't what she found. The war footage on CNN hadn't done the country justice.

The unit unloaded off the big CH-47 Chinook helicopter that had ferried them from the airport in Kabul to the Forward Operating Base. The name fit the area loosely. Long since abandoned as a strategic focal point, it was now used for development of technology and training for new troops entering the war. It looked much nicer than Christina had anticipated.

The outside looked fairly ordinary. There was a big stone building with tents scattering the landscape. She could see soldiers in the guard towers holding their M-16s at the ready. She saw an M249, Machine Gun propped up on sandbags just inside the checkpoint, the only barrier to the outside world.

She helped in the unloading of the second chopper and of a five-ton truck that had shown up. It contained all their gear.

"Excuse me, Sergeant Davies?"

Christina didn't hear the young man at first; the young private looked over at one of his squad mates, unsure of what to do.

"Sergeant Davies?" he repeated louder.

Christina whirled around, blushing that she'd forgotten that she was no longer a mere specialist; she'd received a promotion just before their departure. With the promotion, she earned the titles of Squad Leader and Section Leader. She was one of the most experienced members of the fuel section, second only to her Platoon Sergeant.

"Yes, Private?" she asked, smirking when the young pup went to parade rest, legs spread a shoulder's width apart, his hands clasped tightly against his back.

"You're needed in a leader meeting. I'm to take you there."

Christina nodded. "Lead away, Private!"

She hurried into the meeting room, surprised to see a number of civilians sitting around the table, along with her Company Commander, Platoon Sergeant and the Base Commander. She sat down in the empty chair next to her Platoon Sergeant, looking around a little nervously. She was new to leadership and was unsure why she was the only E-5(Sergeant) in the room.

Christina was studying some maps on the wall, so wasn't paying much attention to the stream of people in and out of the room. She didn't notice the tall, extraordinarily handsome masked man enter the room and take a seat further down the table. As the base commander stood and cleared his throat, his signal that he was ready to begin Chris pulled out her notebook and a pen, ready to take any notes necessary.

"Well, lets get right to it, shall we?" He sat back down and pulled out some papers "Travis! I assume you have a squad ready to begin working with our POL(Petroleum,Oils and Lubricants) team from DC?"

Captain Travis nodded "Yes sir. The squad leader is Sergeant Davies here," he said, pointing to Chris.

"Davies!"

Chris looked at him. "Yes sir?" she replied crisply.

"I understand you are to ETS in January, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"We'll try to have you out of here as soon as we can. But, as the most experienced member in your company you're needed here now. Understand me, soldier?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. I know you got a lot of young pups to look after. But from what Captain Travis tells me, you're the perfect soldier for the job. You think you can handle it?"

"I know I can, sir," she replied confidently.

Colonel Stevenson laughed. "I think you're right. Now you're at this meeting 'cause I want you to know exactly what the hell is going on around here."

Chris nodded, not noticing the intent gaze of the man a few seats down on the other side of the table.

Erik hadn't given the young lady a second glance when he'd come into the room; he'd noted her last name but figured it was a common enough name. He'd been looking over some reports, so hadn't even looked at her face. He'd nearly fallen out of his chair when he heard the voice he knew he could pick out of any crowd. She looked so different! More confident. With her hair pulled back into a severe bun, no make-up and her uniform, she hardly looked like his Christina! She looked…she looked like a soldier.

"First I'd like to introduce you to our POL design team. The leader is Erik Montgomery, here."

Chris started when she heard his name and looked wildly around the table, her eyes widening when she saw Erik sitting three seats down. She recovered her composure, and nodded to him.

"Mr. Montgomery," she murmured.

She barely heard the names of the other five seated around Erik, she saw only him.

"Mr. Montgomery and his team are designing a new dispensing system. They will be looking to your squad to test it out and they hope run some more ideas by you. You up to it?"

"Of course, sir."

Erik passed her a notebook.

"This is the rough design we've come up with. If you have any ideas, feel free to bring them to any of us. You're the ones who are going to have to use this system so your feedback is the most important."

Chris took the binder and immediately began to flip through it, earning a chuckle from Colonel Stevenson. "Yes, you'll do well. Have your squad ready to go in the orderly room at 0700 tomorrow. You're dismissed, Sergeant. Get some rest and some chow."

"Yes sir!" She stood up, nodding to the men around the table before leaving.

'_Erik is here!'_

She was starved! She hurried to the chow hall, and began to flip through the binder Erik had given her while she ate. Before turning in that night, she found her squad and told them where to meet her and at what time. She unrolled her sleeping bag, kicked off her boots and passed out.

The next morning, feeling somewhat refreshed, she showered and dressed smartly in a fresh uniform. Chris was ready to face the day…and Erik. With her M-16 slung over her shoulder, she entered the orderly room, noting that no one else had showed up yet. A glance at her watch told her she was 20 minutes early. She set her weapon on the floor and sat down at the table to continue reading.

"Interesting reading, Sergeant?" that voice of silk asked.

"Indeed sir, you have some…radical ideas here."

"We have to stay one step ahead of everyone else. This is no time to be careful." Erik responded as he took the chair next to hers.

"Perhaps," she murmured. "I had NO idea you, of all people, would be here," she said after a few moments.

"The same could be said of you," he retorted.

She grinned at him. "Well, Uncle Sam didn't want me to feel left out"

That earned her a rich chuckle from Erik. "Indeed, what a pity that would be!"

Chris was unsure of what to do…this was completely out of her realm of experience. He was no longer the Erik she was so drawn to, he couldn't be. He was her supervisor; he was the taskmaster who would control her every move for the next seven months.

Erik, too, was at a loss. Never before in any of his ventures for the military had he encountered anyone he'd known as personally and cared for as much as Christina. This could put the entire mission in jeopardy; he would have to bury his feelings for her deeply, for her own safety.

**Two Months Later**

Fists clenched, teeth grinding, Christina listened to one of Erik's team members' drone on and on about the importance of grounding and bonding…like she was a simpleton and didn't understand the words being said. After ten minutes of repetition, she could take no more.

"Thank you!" she said tightly, surprising the man so much that he stopped. "But I understand the importance of grounding and bonding. A 'poodle' could understand their importance. That's not why you're here. You were assigned to teach me about the new dispensing system that you have designed. Mr. Montgomery has shown me the sketches and statistics already. In fact" she paused to take a breath, hoping to calm herself, "I helped him set this," she pointed to the model set up on a table, "Up. Now all I need from you is the specifications for the set up of the collapsible tanks."

The young man she had interrupted looked a bit insulted, while the older man next to him looked at Chris with…respect? Humor?

Chris very nearly screamed when they looked at her oddly; did they not know she was on a deadline? Erik would be finished with his meeting shortly and she had to have the model completely set up and a draft of a task list for her squad started so they could begin the actual setup. Later that afternoon, she and Erik had to go inspect the small pipeline that had been set up a few miles outside the FOB. It was nowhere as grand as the hundreds of miles of pipeline that ran in Iraq, but would be sufficient enough for their needs. And these two idiots were slowing her up!

"We don't have them," the younger man, Brian said a bit smugly.

"You don't have them," she echoed irritably.

"No, we don't have any hard copies," Brian said irritably. Who did this slip of girl think she was ordering him around?!

Chris took another deep breath; she feared that she would actually hit the man. The heat and stress of the situation were wearing her temper and patience very thin. "I know there is a hard copy somewhere, where do you think I got the specs to put this thing together?" She knew she was toeing a very thin line. The civilian contractors had a rank nearly equivalent to officers and could make her life quite miserable if they reported her rudeness to her Section Sergeant and First Sergeant. But she couldn't take their arrogance and condescending nature any longer.

"Well we seem to have misplaced it," the older man, George said.

"Misplaced it?" She rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Okay, why is it you don't want me to look at this hard copy? And don't play dumb with me! You're not dumb and it doesn't become you to act like an idiot. So what's the deal, guys?"

This was one of the many stresses she'd encountered since she'd arrived in Afghanistan twp months ago. She was young, so many of the older, more seasoned team members were hesitant to answer any of her questions or allow her to do her job. Several times since she'd arrived in the country she'd been working with her squad, moving filter separators and piping; inevitably, one of Erik's team members would hurry up and take over. It was infuriating, because as one of the few females in her unit, she'd run into the same problem during her training. She was at a loss as to what to do.

Their silence and defiant looks pushed her over the edge. Between the 110-degree heat and the gear she was wearing her temper was officially boiling over.

Christina had just taken a deep breath, ready to lay into the two bumbling idiots in front of her, when the voice she knew so well came from behind her.

"Gentlemen, if you would like to keep your jobs and employment with the government I suggest you start cooperating with Sergeant Davies. I put her in charge of this operation, which means you," he pointed to the men, "Answer to her." he pointed to Chris. "And I'm very disappointed in the disrespectful way you've treated her to this point in time, and it ends now! Is that understood?" Although he spoke quietly, he sounded no less intimidating.

Chris tool great pleasure in seeing the blood drain from their faces. They nodded meekly, offering half-hearted apologies before scurrying off.

Chris gave Erik a relieved smile. "Thanks, I thought I was going to have to beat them senseless with my M-16!"

Erik's rich chuckle reached her ears. "I'm sorry, Sergeant. Had I known they were giving you such a hard time before now I would have dealt with it immediately."

Erik had listened to the entire exchange and heard Christina's increasing agitation. He'd hoped that when faced with her anger, the men would snap to, but sadly, they hadn't. He'd been hearing rumors that his team members weren't cooperating with Chris, but he'd never actually seen it until today. He had half a mind to send them packing back to the states. He'd been furious, though Chris had been too angry herself to notice.

"Shall we go out to inspect the pipeline?" he inquired.

"Sure, let me go to the motor pool and get a Humvee. I'll meet you back here?"

"Nonsense, I'll walk over there with you," he responded.

"Cool" she picked up her Individual Body Armor, or IBA, and strapped it on. It felt miserable in the heat. It consisted of two twenty-pound lead plates, one in the front and one in the back. It was an improvement on the flak vests of the past, but it was still unbearably hot. Pulling her protective helmet on and slinging her M-16 over her shoulder, she indicated she was ready. She grabbed two members of her squad to accompany them, they needed the pipeline experience.

Once she'd signed out a Humvee, they loaded up and departed for the pipeline. It was a bit dusty when they got out there. The wind was kicking up a dust storm like they'd not seen before.

As they unloaded the vehicle, Chris called her two squad members to her. "Keep an eye out, this is a perfect time for anyone to attack. The visibility is low and this is a relatively unused part of the pipeline. They might have stolen part of it already, or tapped into it," she said to them, keeping her voice low.

"Remember; Stay Alert, Stay Alive." She took a magazine for her M-16 and loaded it into the weapon, riding the bolt forward thus engaging it into the rifle. "Lock and load, but keep it on safe. I don't want any accidents out here! Don't fire until you've been fired on!" she leveled a stern look at the two young men, Saunders and Evans. "Am I clear?"

"Yes, Sergeant" they answered in unison.

She nodded, then turned back to Erik, who was watching them with an unreadable look on his face. "Expecting trouble?" he inquired, as they all walked over to the pipeline.

"No, but that's usually when it turns up."

True to her suspicions, there was a nine-foot section of pipe missing. "Shit," she muttered, as she saw the empty section, "I wonder how much more they took."

Erik raised an eyebrow. "They might have taken more?" he knew that on occasion, members of Al-Qaeda stole sections of pipe and fittings but this was the first time he had personally encountered it.

"I can't be sure." She looked down the pipeline. "It looks more or less intact, but we should send out a few security teams to inspect the entire length."

She was bending down to inspect the damage when without warning the situation turned deadly.


	7. Chapter 7

At first Chris didn't hear the gunshots, when she did her brain wasn't able to function properly. She'd been trained for 5 years for this type of situation, but as soon as she heard the first shot fear coursed through her, followed closely by adrenaline.

"Incoming!!" she shouted, she looked around and saw with some degree of comfort that her squad members hit the ground, slinging their weapons into the pocket of their shoulders and returning fire. Her eyes scanned behind her, looking for Erik who had returned to the Humvee for something. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw him crouched behind the humvee giving her the thumbs up sign, telling her he was okay.

Great, now all she had to do was get her and her 3 companions out of there. Easier said than done! She scanned the horizon, hoping to catch a glimpse of their attackers. But all she saw was sand…

She blinked when a trickle of sweat dripped into her eyes, burning. Bringing her own weapon up to her shoulder she took it off safe and looked down the barrel, looking out the forward sight…hoping.

Suddenly it got quiet…too quiet. She knew they were regrouping. Chris knew she how to get them out of there, as the senior NCO she was in charge…meaning 3 lives were being held in her hands.

With that sobering thought she yelled to Saunders and Evans, when they both turned to look at her she indicated they were to retreat to the humvee, she would lay down cover fire should the need arise. With practiced precision the men made their way back to the vehicle using the tiresome but somewhat effective 2-3 second rush. Crawling, jumping up and sprinting for 2-3 seconds before hitting the ground…repeat until insane, or safe whichever comes first.

Once she saw them safely inside the armored vehicle along with Erik she made her move. Unfortunately that was exactly what her attackers had been waiting for. As soon as she started sprinting a spray of bullets followed her. She hit the ground, cursing and trying to see where the bullets were coming from. She heard the familiar sound of the M-16's response to their hostile actions, smelled the gun powder. She began to craw again, but at this rate it would take entirely too long. Risking her life once again she leapt to her feat as quickly as she could with all her gear on and ran like she never ran before.

Everything happened so quickly…

She heard the shot…

Felt the burning sensation in her calf and shoulder…

Hit the ground, hard unsure of what just happened.

She heard three distinctive cries of disbelief from the three men sitting inside the Humvee watching in horror as two rounds hit their mark. Returning fire and receiving none in return Saunders and Erik sprinted from the vehicle to Chris's side.

She struggled to open her eyes when she heard Erik's desperate voice pleading with her to open her eyes. With much effort she managed to open her eyes, finding herself looking into Erik's panicked, heartbroken golden/green depths.

"Oww" she finally said, eliciting a small smile from Saunders who was monitoring the bleeding from her leg and shoulder.

"Just hold still Sgt, I want to control the bleeding before we try to move you. I'm going to have Evans call for MEDEVAC"

"No!" Chris shouted, though it took what little energy she had left. "No, just take me back in the hummer"

"Sgt, it's going to be a bumpy ride. I don't want to risk…"

"Soldier!" Chris reprimanded hotly "You will do as I say! I don't want a damned MEDEVAC! I want you to help me onto my feet and drive the damned Humvee"

Erik and Saunders began to protest but Saunders was cut off by a murderous glare from Chris. Erik looked down at her helplessly "Ch-Sgt Davies please be reasonable" he pleaded.

Chris shook her head "No! Get me in that vehicle now. Before they start snooping around! That's an order private!" she shouted at Saunders.

Erik and he carefully lifted Chris and hurried her to the Humvee, propping her in the back seat before speeding off back to the FOB.

Three days later Chris finally came to…

She looked around slowly, her whole body felt heavy. She remembered getting shot, passing out in the humvee. But the rest of the time is a blur…she didn't appear to be in the aid station at the FOB but in a hospital room.

"Good! You're awake" someone said from the other side of the room.

Chris narrowed her eyes at the speaker, her vision still a bit blurred.

"Where am I?" she rasped.

"Bethesda Medical Center, Maryland"

"Maryland?" she repeated dumbly.

"Yeah, as soon as they removed the bullets from your shoulder and leg they sent you stateside for your recovery. They felt it would be better if you began your physical therapy here, rather than in a war zone."

"Sounds reasonable" Christina agreed tiredly.

She tried to sit up "What about my…Saunders, Evans and Mr. Montgomery?" she asked, suddenly very worried.

"They're fine! Worried about you. Mr. Montgomery was hesitant to allow you to travel but unfortunately he didn't have much of a choice" the nurse smiled grimly, as though remembering an unpleasant experience.

"He did arrange for his business partner to look in on you" she said as Nadir poked his head in the room.

"I'm glad to see you awake my dear. Erik was worried sick"

Chris managed a small grin "I'm tough, it's going to take more than a bullet to stop me"

Nadir grinned at her "Indeed, it took two" he teased, pulling up a chair next to her bed. She was still very pale but looked much better than she did when she arrived.

Chris attempted to move but winced as pain spread through her leg and torso. "This is going to suck" she muttered.

Nadir could only nod; the girl was in for a hard few months as she recovered.

"Erik wanted me to tell you he was worried about you, he wanted to return to the states but I convinced him to remain for the last 5 months of his contract."

"Thank you" she grimaced "I don't want him to see me like this" she whispered.

"I figured. If you need anything, you need not hesitate to ask. Though I doubt you are in need of much for now. It will be a week or so before you are released, after which you'll go through some vigorous Physical Therapy. But the doctor says there's no reason you shouldn't regain full use of your arm and leg"

"Well I guess this means I won't be re-enlisting" she joked wryly.

"Indeed not" Nadir agreed sagely.

Chris didn't deserve the hardship she would go through in the next 8 months or so. He only hoped she was strong enough.

3 Months Later

"Good Christina, you're doing excellent" Dr.Beverly said encouragingly

Chris clenched her teeth, sweat rolling down her face as she struggled to hold her weight up as she took halting, choppy steps.

As it turns out the bullet in her leg damaged some of the muscles in her leg, making her recovery a bit harder. Though thankfully for her strong stubborn streak she held in there, surpassing all expectations put to her by her Physical Therapist.

She had been discharged from the Army, honorably of course. She received the Purple Heart among other awards. She was settled back home, living with her brother Jason who kept looking at her as though she would keel over and die any day. Her parents had attempted to take her in, but she knew she would go nuts living under their roof again so she took Jason up on his offer. She was much happier with her older brother anyway.

Jason and Nadir watched from chairs on the other side of the room, every time Chris stumbled Jason's fists clenched harder in his lap. Nadir knew how it killed the young man to watch his baby sister struggle so. Erik had been asking after Chris ever since they'd loaded her onto a plane and flew her stateside. Nadir could hear the near desperation in his friend, knowing that his fear stemmed from the loss of his wife and child. Erik cared for Christina and he was so afraid of losing her.

As she neared the end of her session Chris was covered in sweat and was more than a little sore and tired. As she always was…

Jason handed her a bottle of water and gently wiped the sweat from her brow. She grinned at him, hoping to ease his tension. She hated the look of pity that glazed his eyes whenever he saw her struggle. Her shoulder had healed fairly quickly; she had a brace on her leg and needed crutches. Because of the amount of pain she was in when she was released from the hospital and the rigors of PT she had lost some weight, but it wasn't anything anyone was concerned about.

Surprisingly her demeanor was still as cheerful as ever, oh she had her bad days…everyone did. But she was determined to not let this bring her down any.

Chris wobbled behind Nadir and Jason as they left the Medical Arts building, the two were arguing about something…she stopped listening to their squabbles a long time ago; they reminded her of two little old ladies bickering about bingo.

"I don't think it's wise for her to be left alone!"Nadir countered.

"For god's sake she's nearly 26 years old!! She will be fine on her own for a few days!" Jason shouted.

"But she's…" Nadir stopped to look back at the object of contention.

"If you say injured I will gladly shove this crutch up your-"she was cut off from finishing her sentence by a glare from her brother.

"Chris! Mind your manners!" he scolded.

"Well at least tell me why you two are bickering about me again"

Jason and Nadir looked at each other nervously "Well…" Nadir began.

"Oh for-"Jason exclaimed "Chris I have to go out of town for a week on a business trip to Chicago. You'll be fine by yourself?" he asked.

Christina scowled at the two men "Of course! I'm perfectly capable to taking care of myself! I don't need a damned nursemaid!" she shouted angrily. "In fact, I'm ready to go back to my townhouse this weekend" she said defiantly. Jason and Nadir both started to argue with her, but were silenced by a glare.

Nadir gave Chris a kiss on the cheek "If that's what you want, call me and I'll send someone over to help."

Christina smiled at him "Thanks Nadir, I don't know what I would've done without you these past few months"

Nadir watched Jason drive away; making sure the car was out of sight before he pulled out his cell phone and called Erik.

As always Erik asked a million questions about Christina's condition, the care she was receiving and how she was feeling. Nadir was beginning to grow weary of the constant demands from his boss who refused to admit any feelings for the young girl, even though it was painfully obvious to Nadir that Erik cared for her…not that it was hard, Nadir was half in love with her as well…

As promised Christina was moved back into her townhouse that Saturday, with a slew of movers sent courtesy of Nadir and Erik. After a full morning of uncovering furniture, pulling more furniture out of storage and shopping Chris was feeling more than a bit sore and irritable. Jason had to leave early in the evening to catch his plane. He made his sister promise to call their parents if she needed anything.

Sitting on the couch, sipping a cup of tea Christina dismissed the last of the movers. All she wanted was some peace and quiet, it had been a long time since she'd been left alone and she wanted to enjoy the solitude. It was the perfect opportunity to think about all that had occurred in the last few months…something she'd refused to do since returning home from the Middle East.

The dull ache in her leg reminded her of how lucky she'd been, though at times it didn't seem like she was so lucky. Having to relearn how to walk, seeing the look on Jason's face whenever she stumbled or struggled. She hated seeing the look of pity on his handsome face; she didn't want anyone's pity! It was a useless emotion and she didn't have time for useless emotions! Chris felt tired; a deep down, bone deep kind of tired that hadn't gone away since she stepped foot in Afghanistan.

While she'd been in country she had been in charge of 8 people…a daunting task for anyone. She'd been responsible for their lives and wellbeing. On top of that she had to work with Erik…every day. At first it had been awkward and uncomfortable for both of them, while they struggled to learn how to interact with each other on a professional level, leaving out any personal attachments.

Christina smiled as she remembered the first few days…how she'd knocked over a table and dropped a 9ft section of piping. All because Erik had looked over her way.

She steadfastly refused to believe her feelings for him were more than platonic…then he would smile at her…a little half-smile that was meant for her and her alone and she would melt.

Then as the day's drug on they became more comfortable with each other, they stayed away from any conversation topics that could lead to anything personal. They found a comfortable camaraderie, often times staying up late debating procedure and technique regarding their assignment.

She missed him…missed him something fierce! She'd looked forward to seeing him after breakfast chow and getting to work, their lunches of MRE's (Meal-Ready-to-Eat) and then eating dinner together. It was a comfortable routine that she missed…she missed his wry sense of humor and the way his eyes would light up when she'd take charge of a situation.

Chris closed her eyes and leaned back against her couch, the only thing she could see of Erik now was the look of total desperation as he held her against him after she'd been shot. She wondered when he'd be home…if he'd be home, or if he would come home in a wooden box…like Rodney had.

That thought brought angry tears to her eyes; she'd refused to let herself feel for anyone because she couldn't deal with the thought of losing them. She'd lost too much already! Downing the last of her tea and hobbling up to her room, though it took her quite a bit to navigate the stairs she settled herself into her bed. The last thought in her mind was hope that Erik would come home to her…safely.


	8. Chapter 8

Erik flipped his phone shut, leaned back into his seat on his private jet and closed his eyes. Only one more day until he'd be home! Tomorrow he could eat real food, sleep in a real bed and see Christina. He'd spoken to Nadir every day, making sure she had everything she could possibly want. He hated being so far away and unable to do anything! He hated feeling out of control!

He stared out the tiny window, looking but not seeing.

Nadir told him that she'd moved back into her own home. While Jason was away on business Nadir had taken her to her physical therapy sessions…a task Erik would take over once he returned home. He'd instructed Nadir to hire a cook and housekeeper for Chris but two days later he'd been informed that a very irate Christina had dismissed both. It was apparent that she didn't like being treated like an invalid.

Every night when Erik closed his eyes he saw her face and heard her laughter. He thought he'd die when he saw her crumple to the ground after the first round hit her. He refused to lose anyone else to tragedy like he lost his beloved Alexis. He vowed he would do everything in his power to ensure Christina's safety.

When he'd talk to Nadir, the man would ask the same thing…'have you called her?' And every time his question was met with silence. He was too much of a coward to call her…he didn't want to hear the pain in her voice. He knew all too well the difficulties associated with a long, painful recovery and he'd never wish that kind of pain on anyone, much less her. She deserved so much more than that!

His first stop would be her house.

The skies were fully dark when, mercifully, his plane finally landed. Erik had been pacing like a caged tiger for the past few hours. He was anxious to see Christina, make sure she was okay. When Nadir appeared at the airport with a car, Erik didn't even greet his friend, he grunted in his direction and got in the car.

"Take me to Christina's."

"Erik, she's most likely sleeping," Nadir pointed out, gesturing to the late hour shown on the dashboard clock.

"Fine, just go to my house, then," Erik mumbled, settling down into the seat. It felt good to be home!

Chris groaned as she rolled out of bed the next day. Mornings were always the hardest time of day for her. She often times woke up stiff, sometimes her leg hurt. A long hot shower normally did the trick, so after standing under the scalding water far longer than necessary, she stepped out, wrapped a fluffy towel around herself and hobbled her way into her bedroom to dress for the day. At least she didn't have a therapy appointment today and, thankfully, warm weather had arrived early so she could get away with shorts rather than trying to deal with long pants.

A look at the clock told Christina that Nadir would be over shortly, bearing breakfast and a newspaper. You could set a clock by that man! Right on time there was the tell-tale knock on the door just as the coffee was done percolating.

"C'mon in Nadir!" she shouted. She'd given him a key to her townhouse when she moved back in; it had been so difficult for her to make it to the door when he or anyone of the staff from Erik's would come by. Hastily preparing a cup of coffee for Nadir, she set it on the counter and turned around, smiling. There were two tall figures standing in her dining room.

Erik shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the next, the man next to him watched with some amusement. Christina felt her heart leap into her throat.

"Good morning Christina," Erik said carefully, as though she would attack him. "I hope we aren't interrupting anything?"

When the power of speech returned to Chris, she smiled nervously, shaking her head at Erik's question.

"No, no, not at all." She handed Nadir his coffee, which he took, offering a quiet 'thank you' before he sat down at the table.

"Would you like a cup of coffee Erik?"

"Please" he responded. He watched her as she moved slowly across the kitchen, taking a cup out of the cupboard. He wanted to help! But he knew that it would only make her mad.

She set his cup on the table along with cream and sugar, should he desire them. Chris eased herself into a chair and took a long sip of her own coffee, afraid that if she broke the silence in the dining room Erik would disappear.

"You look well," Erik offered.

"Thank you, so do you" she replied, smiling at him. He looked 'very' good, the days spent outside working tanned his skin to a sexy golden brown and brought out some red in his nearly black hair. Very good indeed!

"Nadir has been telling me that you're doing quite well in your physical therapy."

"Yeah, pretty soon I won't need my crutches!" she jerked a thumb to the implements of torture that rested next to her seat.

Erik was unsure how to bring up his next question, though with someone like Chris it was best to just get everything out into the open.

"If it's alright with you, I'd like to take you to your therapy sessions." He looked down into his coffee cup, not brave enough to look her in the eye.

Christina attempted to hide her excitement; now that he was home she realized just 'how' much she had been missing her mystery man.

"That sounds fine, though I warn you, it's at 8 am…and traffic is usually terrible."

Erik waved a hand dismissively. "I'm not concerned with that, I'll be by to pick you up tomorrow morning at 7:15 sharp."

"I'll have coffee ready here," she said smiling. Maybe now she could get him to open up…

The next morning, seven fifteen arrived, Chris was ready to go and waiting by the door with two cups of coffee sitting on the table next to the front door. Erik barely had a chance to knock on the door when it swung open, revealing a very happy, bubbly Christina.

"Good morning!" she said handing him a cup. "Ready?"

"I believe I should be asking you that, my dear."

"Yep, let's get this show on the road." She hobbled out, taking her time going down the five stairs that led to her townhouse. The last thing she needed was a twisted ankle on top of her injured leg. Erik carried her coffee for her; keeping a very close eye on her to be sure she didn't fall. Settling her into the car, he hurried to the other side, got in and started driving.

Without Nadir around, Erik was able to relax around Christina quite a bit. He glanced over at her out of the corner of his eye, watching as she sipped her coffee and watched the passing landscape.

"How long have you been home?" her voice broke through the silence.

"I got here the night before last, but I arrived Stateside nearly a week ago. Standard debrief and the like."

"Ah, a bunch of sitting around congratulating each other on a job well-done!"

Erik chuckled, "Indeed, I was bored out of my skull."

"I don't blame ya."

Silence reigned once again, Chris had so many questions she wanted to ask but wasn't brave enough…she wanted to ask him about the fire, about his wife and daughter, about his enforced solitude…she remembered how he had reacted the last time she mentioned his past, and clamped her mouth firmly shut.

But then, if she'd learned anything from her near-death experience it was that life was too short and you had to take every chance you could…if you didn't you weren't truly living.

"Erik, I have some questions that I need to ask you. You'll probably be angry with me for asking. I know, I promised you I would never ask about," she took a breath, "About your past." She stopped when she saw him stiffen slightly and grip the steering wheel more tightly. She couldn't back down now!

"But I want to know you, Erik. I want to help you."

' _I want to love you_,' her mind screamed-where did that thought come from?

Erik swallowed hard, but nodded. His jaw was clenched tight, and she could see the tension in his entire body. But she 'had' to know…

"What happened to you, Erik?" she asked softly. "You are brilliant, successful and talented in so many different fields. Why did you seclude yourself for so long?"

Erik could feel his heart pounding in his chest; he had hoped she would never ask…how could he explain it to her? How could he poison her with his misery? He risked a glance over at her face, which was taut with concern, and he felt his fear melting…somewhat.

His mouth felt dry, so he took a long draw from his coffee cup before beginning. "I was in a house fire; it caused significant damage to the right side of my face. Between the burns and six reconstructive surgeries, it was nearly three years before my face healed to the point it has." He swallowed; he'd never discussed this with anyone before, and it was damned uncomfortable!

"I realized I'd never have a 'normal' face again, the damage was too extensive. So, like a wounded animal, I returned to my lair to lick my wounds, so to speak." He moistened his lips with the tip of his tongue, not daring to look at his companion.

"I chose to seclude myself because I couldn't handle the horror and pity on people's faces when they saw me. When I did have to go out into the world, I took to wearing this mask. My friends and colleagues all knew what I looked like before the fire and felt sorry for me for my plight. The mask makes me more of a curiosity than a monster. Over the years, it has almost become part of me."

Chris made a sound of anger. He glanced over at her.

"Then you need to find better friends!" she declared. "How dare those people treat you like that!" She crossed her arms over her chest. She looked like a beautiful avenging angel. Erik had never had anyone defend him like that…it melted the ice around his heart a little more.

"I couldn't stand being treated differently because of this," he gestured to the mask "So, rather than attempting to change the people around me, I went into seclusion. It seemed much easier at the time."

"Erik! You," she stopped, her mouth drawn in the thin line that he had learned to associate with her anger, "You never should've felt like you had to conform for other people. If they don't like you the way you are, then damn them! Not you!"

Erik managed a wobbly smile. "If only I had your strength, Christina," he murmured.

"But Erik, you do! Even with all that terribly tragic stuff that happened to you, you overcame it and survived! You are the strongest person I know!" she declared, turning in her seat to face him.

"Erik, I promise you that you never have to hide anything from me! There is nothing shameful about your face or what happened to you! It's a crime that other people made you feel ashamed of who you are."

Erik opened his mouth to argue with her, but she silenced him with a look. "No! Listen. I have seen a lot in my stint in the Army. I saw more horrors than you could ever imagine as I recovered in that hospital. I saw people who had suffered chemical burns, had amputations, had their faces ripped nearly off by gunfire or shrapnel." She stopped, her facing losing some color as she was lost in her own memories "And, I can guarantee that I've seen much worse than your face. I've seen what human cruelty can do to other people…there is nothing more gruesome and terrifying than seeing the power we humans have over each other."

She took a breath, calming herself. She knew that if she got herself too worked up, Erik would retreat back into himself and never confide in her again.

"You shouldn't hide yourself away, Erik. You're too wonderful to do something like that!" She smiled weakly. "When I saw you in that room in Afghanistan, all those months ago, I was beyond happy. I saw that you had finally chosen let yourself live up to your potential, let yourself out of your self-imposed prison. I can only hope that you won't hide yourself away any more."

She ached to take one of his hands in hers, but she couldn't find the courage.

"Don't hide yourself from me," she said softly, so softly he almost didn't hear. He turned to look at her, but she'd turned back in her seat and turned her gaze back out the window. She'd opened a can of worms and she regretted her harsh reaction…she fought to regain control of her emotions. She hated showing weakness that to anyone, especially Erik.


	9. Chapter 9

It had been nearly a month since Erik's return, and it seemed to Christina that their relationship hadn't gotten anywhere! Christina scowled as she thought about the inane conversations they would have on the way to her PT, never really discussing _anything_! It was maddening!

One good thing was she'd been allowed to return to work, mercifully, so she didn't sit at home all day and brood about her situation with Erik. For so long, she'd tried to convince herself that she only wanted friendship from him, but she now knew it wasn't enough. It had been almost two years since Rodney had died. Her jaw dropped when she realized how quickly the time had passed by! Two years - she'd had plenty of time to mourn her loss, and she knew she was more than ready to move on.

She dropped the pen she'd been holding in irritation. She couldn't force Erik into anything he didn't want or wasn't ready for, but she wanted to show him how she felt about him. It had become apparent to her she'd have to be straight up, the man, for all his genius, could be incredibly dense.

The school day had ended nearly an hour prior; she'd been sitting at her desk brooding instead of grading tests. As it had turned out, not much had changed at the school since her deployment overseas and her injury. The principal, Mr. Jeffries, had been very pleased that she had chosen to return in spite of her injury. Of course, he'd made arrangements for her comfort during her recuperation and so she could ease back into the civilian sector and her job. One of the things that had changed was the staff; her friend, Meg, was still there but there were several new faces among the teaching staff. One that had all the younger female teachers in a fuss was 5th grade teacher, Nicholas Young.

Meg had happily informed her that he'd been making inquiries about Chris specifically. This had delighted Meg to no end, as she could see how frustrated Chris was becoming over the situation with Erik. She couldn't blame the girl; she'd have given up on him entirely months ago. Chris had always been the more tender hearted of the two.

Returning her attention to the stack of papers in front of her, she continued her task. She heard a soft knock at her door; glancing up, she saw Nicholas Young leaning against the doorjamb with a grin on his face.

'_This must be the piece of eye candy Meg was gushing about earlier,'_ she thought to herself.

"Nicholas Young! How kind of you to mingle with us lower beings!" she joked.

He smiled at her; Lord but he was handsome! Sandy hair, hazel eyes and kind smile…eye candy indeed!

"Actually, I was wondering if perhaps you wanted to grab a bite to eat. I was on my way out, saw you hunched over those tests and thought you could use a break."

As handsome as he was, there something about him that made her uneasy…her spider sense was tingling.

'_Stop it!' _ she commanded herself. '_He's handsome and funny, what's the harm in going out on a date with the man? Erik sure as hell isn't making any moves,'_ she thought sulkily. She had nothing to feel guilty about, so why did she? Maybe Meg was right and she needed to move on, she could only do so much…if Erik didn't want to get involved there wasn't anything she could do about it.

With that in mind, Chris gave him a dazzling smile. "That would be great, just give me ten minutes to pack everything up here." She began to gather up the test papers and stuff them in her tote bag.

"Sure thing!" He grinned at her and left.

He returned ten minutes later, offering his arm and gallantly carrying her bag. Once they reached their vehicles, they agreed that he would follow her to her townhouse so she could park her car.

A half hour later, they were tucked away in the corner of a deli, sandwiches and iced tea in front of them.

"So, from what I hear around the school, you were in the Army?" he inquired, before taking a bite of his sandwich.

"Well, Reserves, to be totally accurate," she amended with a smile.

"And you were sent to…" he paused, obviously trying to remember snippets of information he'd heard from various people at school.

"Afghanistan," she supplied. He looked kind of cute when he was thinking.

"Ah, sounds rough."

She gave a small shrug as she took a bite "Nah, it wasn't all that bad. I mean, it wasn't wonderful, but the work was interesting."

"And you got injured…"

"Mmhmm, shot…twice actually." She_ loved_ seeing people's reactions to that news!

"Twice?" he asked, surprised, "Brave girl!"

"I was lucky, one was in my shoulder and the other was in my leg." She sipped her iced tea, watching his reaction carefully. If he was going to coddle her, she was done with him.

As if sensing her unspoken challenge, he merely raised his iced tea in honor of her bravery, took a sip and moved on.

"So, what about you, Nicholas? I know almost nothing about you."

"Nick, please," he corrected softly, with a small smile. "Not much to tell, raised near DC, my dad was a civilian contractor for the military. My brother followed in his footsteps." He laughed. "I was a disappointment to my dad, I think. Wanted me to follow his footsteps; join the Marines and then do work for the government."

"You didn't want that kind of life? Military life, I mean?" she asked, pushing away the remnants of her meal.

"Nah, that was my dad's and brother's piece. I wanted to teach. My mom was a teacher."

"Was?" she echoed.

"Yeah." He looked away for a moment. "She died a few years back. Dad took it hard."

"I'm sorry," Chris murmured.

He smiled at her.

"Thanks." He idly stirred his tea, unsure of what else to say.

"So your dad and brother still work for the government?" she prodded.

The smile faded and he set his lips in a firm line. "No, my dad got out of the business and opened his own engineering firm."

"Why?"

"His designs for a big project were stolen, and the credit given to another guy."

"How terrible!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, dad was real upset about it for a while. But then something happened to the guy's wife, and my dad suddenly quit and moved us away from the area. He set up shop here."

Christina's spider sense started tingling again…

"What happened to the guy's wife?"

He shrugged. "I think there was a fire or something." He made a dismissive gesture. "Dad didn't really say much about it. I guess he knew the guy and his wife pretty well. I think I met them a few times. She was really pretty - I remember that!" Chris felt the blood drain from her face; Nick noticed and immediately took her hand.

"God I'm sorry! Listen to me droning on like some damned gothic novel or something!"

Chris attempted a small smile.

"No, it's fine. I'm just tired." She was a terrible liar, but he didn't know her well enough to notice, she hoped. At least, he didn't say anything. What had shocked her more than the story itself was the hardness in his eyes…she was sure it hadn't been there before. But as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished. After a few long moments of uncomfortable silence, he graciously offered to drive her home.

As she watched him drive away after he'd dropped her off at home, she wondered about the correlation between Erik's tragedy and Nick's dad. She knew if it was more than coincidence she couldn't hold it against Nick; any sins were his father's. But she couldn't help but feel how betrayed Erik might feel if she became involved with this man. Perhaps Nick wouldn't want to be more than friends…

Of course, no such luck.

Over the next few weeks, Nick stopped by her classroom on a regular basis after school and invited her to do something with him. Since Erik still had made no moves, she didn't have the heart to turn Nick down. After the fourth "date", Chris felt _more _than a little suspicious of Nick's motives, though logically she had no reason to be. Nick was kind, intelligent, and witty and always came up with really neat outings. The previous night, they'd gone to the zoo! The zoo! She hadn't been there since she was a little girl. Even though she was having a blast, with only a small side of guilt, she couldn't help but feel slightly on her guard when she was with him. Ever since she heard that story about his father, the mystery man and the fire, she'd been on edge. She knew the best course of action would be to ask him or Erik about it, but she knew she really didn't want the answers.

Erik…

She hadn't seen him in nearly a week. Every time she would get ready to go over to his house, Nick would call, or drop by. Christina thought she had seen Erik's black Mercedes SUV parked down the street one evening when she came home from work. But he neither came in nor called her.

He deserved better than that! All her talk of never hurting him, never betraying his trust, and what was she doing? Hurting him in the worst possible way, all because her pride had been damaged by his reluctance to ask her out. How high school could she get?

She was startled from her thoughts by Nick's lips on the back of her neck. Since their first date, he'd progressively become braver, first by taking her hand, sometimes slipping an arm around her waist. From there, he'd moved to giving her a soft goodnight kiss at her door; now he had no qualms about kissing her in public. Chris wasn't a prude by any stretch of the imagination; but for some reason, his affections were only causing her to be more cautious around him. His kisses were pleasant, never demanding; he never went beyond simple affectionate gestures and had never once tried to force her into anything. So why did it make her so damn jumpy?!

Her traitorous mind screamed, '_because he's not the one you want to kiss you, damn idiot!'_ but she tamped it down quickly. Although, the little voice in the back of her head wouldn't remain silent forever. Just as Nick wouldn't remain patient forever.

"You ready to go, honey?" Nick asked her, slipping his hand around hers.

She took one last look at the painting in front of her, and nodded, "Yeah, I think we've seen everything here that we possibly can."

It had been Nick's idea to come to the art gallery, naturally. He guided her outside to the car; once inside, he asked, "Want to grab a bite?"

This was her chance…

"No thank you, I've had a great time, but I need to get home," she replied.

"Ah, I was thinking maybe…" he paused, looking at her nervously "Maybe you could come back to my place?"

Warning bells sounded in her head.

"Thank you, but I need to get home," she said again, firmly.

"Okay, rain check?"

She nodded. "Sure." '_Like hell!'_

He pulled into her driveway and, as always, got out to take her up to her door. She unlocked it before turning to him.

"Thank you for the great evening."

"You're always welcome," he said softly, before kissing her lips gently.

She pulled back, giving him a strained smile that was his cue to leave. He hurried down the steps and into his car. As he was pulling away, from the corner of her eye she caught a flash of white in the dying daylight. A dark clad figure was striding rapidly towards a black Mercedes SUV parked down the street.

Erik had turned on his heel, dropping the bouquet of roses he'd brought for her, and got into his own vehicle. He saw Chris hurrying down the steps as quickly as she could, but he took off before she reached him. It was hard for him to see much with tears blinding his vision as he drove home.

As his car turned the corner, wheels screeching as he took the turn too quickly, Chris bent down and picked up the discarded roses. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she made her way into her townhouse to put Erik's roses in water. Tomorrow she would go to him, apologize to him and beg him to forgive her, again. Even though she knew this time she didn't deserve his forgiveness one bit.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey y'all, yes I am back! I know it's been a terribly long time since I updated, for that I'm sorry. I hope this chappie isn't too much of a disappointment, it's been a long time since I worked on this story so be gentle with me while I'm struggling to get this story back on track. As always your reviews are welcome! Hope y'all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the POTO characters, however all characterizations in this story are mine.**

Christina sat at the table stroking the velvety pedals of the blood-red roses; her tears had stopped long ago. She could only hope Erik would hear her out.

Early the next morning, mercifully it was a Saturday Chris hurried to shower and dress before speeding over to Erik's house. Stephan admitted her but told her that Erik had gone out the previous night and hadn't returned. Those words chilled her to the core!

"If it's okay, I'll wait for him here"

Stephan nodded before withdrawing from the music room. She felt better being in Erik's house, she sunk into one of the overstuffed chairs in front of the fireplace. Even though there was no fire it was still comforting. She leaned back and inhaled, leather and Erik's cologne…

There was a book sitting on the table next to the chair, the title was in French and with her meager comprehension of the language she couldn't make it out. She didn't know how long she sat there until Stephan woke her for lunch. She was shocked to see it was past noon! She must have fallen asleep. As she was nibbling at the sandwich she heard the door open and someone storm in…. Erik.

She threw down the forgotten morsel and hurried out and saw the last glimpse of him before he disappeared up the stairs. Throwing caution to the wind she was quick to follow him. She stopped outside the door he'd gone into, hesitant to barge in but knowing he wouldn't willingly admit her. Her decision made she turned the knob and walked in.

His suite…

The room was magnificently appointed with dark mahogany furniture, a bed that looked sinfully comfortable, a huge desk sat before the long windows, two nightstands on either side of the bed. An armoire stood along the wall next to her. Dark blue carpeting and bedding made the room seem even more somber. She saw his clothes on the floor and heard the shower running.

This was the moment of choice for her, she could retreat and never speak to Erik again or…she could face his anger and hurt head on and beg his forgiveness.

It was hardly a choice, steeling herself she sat down on the bed and waited…

Erik came out of the bathroom, a robe wrapped around his body and a towel hanging around his neck. At first he dismissed the other person in the room as one of the maids, until he caught the lingering scent of Vanilla and roses…a scent that was so uniquely Christina. He paused mid-stride and leveled an icy glare at her.

She stood up, wringing her hands nervously. "Erik"

"" he replied coolly.

Another step.

"Erik I-" but she didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry"

"For what? You did nothing wrong my dear" the term of endearment normally would have made her heart beat a little faster any other day, but now it sounded empty…cold.

"But I did Erik" she closed her eyes and took a breath; she wouldn't get anywhere unless she told him the truth and spoke from her heart. She opened her eyes to look into his, he may be trying to keep up his cold façade but she could see the infinite pain and fear in his eyes.

"I didn't follow my heart or my instincts. Nick works with me, for the past few weeks we've hung out"

"Gone on dates" Erik supplied harshly.

"Sometimes yes, other times it was just hanging out with a friend"

"You always kiss your friends as such?"

He wasn't going to make this easy.

"He kissed me Erik, I didn't kiss him!" she retorted. _Wonderful, very adult and mature. _"Erik I went out on a few dates with Nick, yes. But that's all it was, a few dates"

"Perhaps that's how you saw it, however that is not how he took it."

"I don't give a damn how he took it!" she spat back before reining in her temper. It wouldn't do any good to get him pissed off…more than he already was. "He may be in it for different reasons, I was just looking for someone to hang out with"

He laughed harshly, a laugh that was devoid of any humor "Because you are such a social reject" he spit out.

Now he was becoming unreasonable and Christina could feel her temper flaring. Her lack of sleep the night before wouldn't help matters either.

"Because I was upset!" she shouted suddenly "Because the person I _wanted_ to be with is a damned coward and wouldn't ask me out to dinner! Because I was hurt that you wouldn't make a move of _any_ kind!"

She wished she could take the words back as soon as she said them, she saw the anger flash in his eyes and his fists clench. He stalked over to her, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her "Coward! How dare you!" he yelled.

"I am what I am because of people like _you_ who _pretend_ to know what it's like to be alone, to be different but you don't have a clue what it's like to live as I have" he bellowed, shaking her. She knew she'd have bruises on her arms from his grip but she wasn't about to back down. If she did she would lose him forever.

She opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off "I secluded myself away from the world because people couldn't accept me for who I was, they wanted me to change because of my face! They ridiculed and feared me because of it! I thought you were different! You _almost_ had me fooled!" he seethed, not relinquishing his grip on her arms. "You really should go to Hollywood, an actress of your caliber would certainly win an Oscar" he spat.

With that he threw her to the floor, ignoring her whimper of pain as she landed painfully on her injured leg.

Ignoring the burn in her leg she jumped to her feet and grabbed Erik's hands and pulled him back to her.

"I am different Erik, I've been trying to tell you for months now that I'm attracted to you but you cut me off at every turn. You throw your face and history back in my face even though you won't tell me much about it. I've tried to make you see that I _want_ to be with you but you won't let me in," she said.

Holding his hands she could feel him fighting to remain in control of himself, his hands…entire body was shaking with anger.

"So you fall into bed with the first pretty boy that comes your way, I'm touched"

Chris lost control of her own temper.

"How dare _you_! I haven't been involved with anyone since Rodney! How _dare_ you insinuate that I'm a loose woman! The closest Nick came to anything was a kiss!" she shouted at him angrily.

Erik refused to speak to her; she dropped his hands irritably "Fine! If that's how you wanted it to be than live with your damned misery. I hope it feels good!" she yelled, tears falling onto her cheeks. "All I wanted was the chance to love you Erik. I _do_ love you! But if you won't let me in, if you won't trust me then it's your loss." She thought she saw something flicker in his eyes but it disappeared quickly.

"Let your pride and misery keep you company at night Erik, cause I'm done. A person can only take so much" she'd long since run out of righteous anger, instead she sounded tired. Tired of pining after a man who obviously didn't want her, tired of loving a specter. It was time to move on. But damnit did it hurt.

Erik watched her anger leave, replaced instead by sadness. She turned and took a step but paused mid-stride "I haven't loved anyone since Rod. When he died I didn't think I'd ever be able to love like that again. Until I met you" her eyes met his "You made me feel again, after I'd been numb for so long. I thought _you_ were different. I thought you were worthy of my love" she ended softly.

She turned back around and started her slow journey out of his room and life.

Erik felt as though he'd been hit _I thought you were worthy of my love_ she'd said. Nothing had ever hurt as much as that one sentence did. He'd been so hurt when he saw that boy kiss her, he drove around all night. By the time he returned home his heart was numb, he couldn't feel anything. Now he felt everything. He couldn't lose her! He'd almost lost her too many times; he couldn't bear losing her now that he knew she loved him. He ran into his closet and hurriedly pulled on a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt and flew down the stairs. He caught up with her at the bottom of the stairs; it nearly killed him to see her limping so obviously…from when she landed on it oddly…when he'd thrown her to the floor.

He leapt down the last 2 stairs and grabbed her hand "Christina, wait" he pleaded. She wouldn't meet his eyes.

He tipped her face up to his "I love you too Christina, please-" he stopped, his own tears threatening to fall "Please don't leave me" he begged.

He saw her lip tremble as she fought for control "Erik I-" she couldn't continue because Erik had captured her lips in a kiss.

At first she was so surprised she didn't respond, but her shock only lasted few seconds. Her arms wound themselves around his neck, his hands found her waist and pulled her to him as he deepened the kiss.

After a few minutes…or hours, she couldn't be sure they came up for air. Chris looking up at him in shock, and Erik watching her for any sign of displeasure. "Forgive me please, don't leave," he whispered.

Chris let her hands fall from his neck to his hands "I won't leave, but" she put up a warning finger "We still have a lot to work out"

He nodded "Of course"

She melted against him, resting her head on his chest listening to his heart beating wildly. His arms came up around her and she felt the lightest kiss on the top of her head. This was where she belonged…in his arms.

After a few long moments, almost an eternity to her, Chris pulled herself away from him and looked up into his eyes, the eyes that had haunted her for so long., their green depths pleaded with her though for what she didn't know. After a long breath Chris gave him a hesitant smile "We need to talk"

Nodding his head in agreement Erik took her hand and led her upstairs to the room he had just ran from, settling them in front of the fireplace on the leather love seat he angled his body towards her, waiting for her to begin, almost afraid to believe that the last 15 minutes had actually happened. As happy as he was that she still loved him, despite his many flaws he could see the wall she'd erected around herself, steeling her heart from further abuse and harm. He hated to be the reason behind it; he knew she wasn't a simpering ninny that would throw herself into his arms once she declared her love for him. His angel was strong and even headed…she would look at every little detail, analyze everything then make her decision. All he could do was wait…

Christina ran a hand through her hair, mussing the curls slightly. With a sigh she looked up at him, things would never be easy with Erik…that much she was certain of, she just hoped he would be strong enough to fight 'with' her and not 'against' her.

"Erik, I never meant to hurt you by going out with Nicholas. I had assumed you hadn't wanted me" she gave him a helpless shrug as she struggled to find the words to explain her actions. "I cared for you for so long…I think I might have fallen a little in love with you that evening in the hospital" she admitted softly, with a blush creeping onto her cheeks when she realized she was repeating herself…this time it didn't sound quite so desperate though. "But you were so closed off from me, you refused to speak with me once I found out about your past and after you returned from Afghanistan I thought..." her thoughts trailed off for a moment "When Nadir told me how you reacted to me being shot and how you demanded he ensure my comfort once I returned state-side I thought that when you got back we could perhaps move beyond friendship".

Chris paused and licked her lips nervously "Then when you finally did come home, you kept yourself distant from me and I thought I could be satisfied with your friendship, but it was a lie" she took his hand and gave him an unsure smile "I wanted more than that, you've been far more than a friend to me for some time. I was hurt when you didn't make a move, then I felt like an idiot for even thinking you could want more with me"

At Erik's snort Chris tore her gave from their entwined hands to his face and saw the disbelief in his eyes.

"Christina there hasn't been a day in nearly 3 years that I haven't thought of you, wanted you. I wanted you to be able to live a normal life, not hiding away in a house with a monster"

Her grip on his hand tightened and her eyes flared in anger "Stop that! Stop calling yourself a monster! Not ONCE have I ever thought you were a –" she stopped, her face crumpling in disgust at the term, almost unable to speak it "monster" she radiated irritation as she fumbled for the right words.

After a long few moments her expression softened "You are not a monster, you are a 'man' who has been devastated by some cruel blows handed out by a unforgiving mistress." She inched closer to him on the love seat "I understand how afraid you are to let someone in, Erik I know. Losing people that you adore is one of the hardest things to experience. But I know how that feels, when I found out Rod had died I didn't think I'd ever be able to love someone again, but then I met you and" she gave him a helpless shrug "And I found the walls around my heart crumbling. 'You' gave me my life back and 'you' taught me how to love again Erik."

Erik sat in stunned silence, not daring to look in her eyes because he knew his own were filling with tears. He nearly jumped when he felt her soft hand caressed his cheek. "Chris" he said roughly, clearing his throat "I…I'm sorry for being such a dolt. No one has shown any interest in me since..." his eyes looked off over her shoulder and she knew he was lost in he past. Chris allowed him his time of reflection, patiently waiting for him to return to her.

"Alexis was…she was incredible and I didn't think I could ever love anyone as I loved her." He saw her eyes drop to her lap; with a gentle finger he lifted her chin so she was looking at his face again "Until I met you Christina. When I'm with you I forget about the fire that tore my life and face away from me, with you…I feel whole again. I'm sorry it has taken me so long to realize all this and I'm sorry I've been such an ass about everything"

Christina laughed; a sound Erik knew he would never get tired of hearing. He pulled her into his arms, situating her on his lap; her head fell to his shoulder and a hand rested on his chest.

"What about ?" he asked hesitantly.

"He's a friend and colleague, nothing more Erik. I haven't wanted anyone but you"

His lips dusted her forehead but she felt his arms tighten around her body just a little bit. He felt her form melt against his and he knew he would never feel anything as sweet as her trusting weight leaning against him. "So what now?" he queried.

"I don't know, I didn't get past the mind numbing fear of thinking you didn't want me"

"I will always want you. But for now…dinner?"

Chris looked out the windows and saw the light had faded away and darkness was almost upon them, she hadn't realized they had been talking for so long. "Dinner sounds great"

Erik settled her on the loveseat again and stood up and stretched his long limbs making Christina's mouth go dry. Her eyes firmly on his butt as he walked to the wall mounted intercom and told the chef to prepare dinner for two she waited patiently for him to return to her. Feeling much better now that their feelings were out in the open she was able to stand up and hobble over to him.

When he saw her limp, guilt stabbed through him as he recalled pushing her away, causing her to fall. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I didn't mean to hurt you"

At her questioning look he explained about the pushing and her now noticeable limp. She waved the concern away with a smile. Stephan appeared in the doorway to announce that dinner was on the table, waiting.


	11. Chapter 11

Dinner was quiet, both people at the table silently reflecting on all that had happened that afternoon. As Chris sipped her coffee after the last plate had been cleared she'd remembered the icky feeling in her stomach that Nicholas's story had given her. She thought she'd take the chance and ask Erik about it.

"Erik?" she asked carefully.

"Yes sweetheart?"

"Did they ever find out who started the fire?"

She heard the breath he sucked in quickly and she watched as he very carefully set his cup down on the table. "No" he answered in a clipped tone that left her hesitant to ask any more questions.

"I'm not trying to upset you Erik, but something I heard a few days ago has my spider sense tingling." At the hard questioning look Erik threw her she took the plunge.

"Nicholas was telling me about his family, his father worked for the military as a civilian contractor. Nick says his father made a big deal out of his work being stolen, then he mentioned the man who supposedly stole his ideas lost his wife in a fire" she stopped, swallowing nervously when she saw his hand tighten on the delicate china cup. Cautiously she reached out and took his hand in hers, pulling it away from the cup. Erik looked startled but didn't say a word. Chris sighed and gave his hand a comforting squeeze.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to dredge up the past Erik. I was just curious and things seemed to fit together. Please don't be mad at me," she implored.

That seemed to break through his reverie, he kissed the back of her hand softly "Think nothing of it my dear."

An uncomfortable silence hung over them before Erik stood up abruptly, pulling Christina to her feet and pulling her into a fierce hug. "I'm sorry love, I didn't mean to shut you out. What happened in the past should remain there, I've spent years trying to put all of it behind me."

"I understand, I won't bring it up again" she pressed a soft kiss to his chin "Promise".

Erik leaned down and captured her lips with his, reveling in her reaction. Her arms found their way around his neck, drawing him closer so that his body was pressed against hers. After a few long moments Erik drew away from her, pressing a kiss to her forehead before setting her completely away from himself.

Tipping her head in confusion Chris waited for Erik to explain. "It's getting rather late my dear, would you like me to drive you home?"

"Oh…um, no. That's not necessary" she replied awkwardly, she didn't know why but she was hurt that he was sending her away. Almost as if reading her thoughts he drew a finger from her forehead down her jaw line.

"Christina I would be happy to have you stay the night here but I don't want you to feel forced or uncomfortable. We only just discussed our feelings today, I didn't want to take advantage of you"

Feeling her cheeks flame with color Chris avoided eye contact, she saw the wisdom of his words. "Wow, I feel like an idiot," she muttered. She was shocked when she felt his hands capture her face, tilting it up to his.

"Never feel like an idiot with me Christina, I will never take advantage of you but I will 'always' welcome you" he hoped she understood his meaning. The deepening of color on her cheeks confirmed it.

Chris rested her hands over his own larger ones and stepped closer to him again, pressing her body to his "Thank you Erik" she touched her mouth to his for just a moment before pulling back, before she lost control. Never before had she desired anyone as much as Erik. She knew they were not ready for that step; she was not ready for that yet.

"When will I see you again?" she asked as his arms wrapped around her waist and his cheek rested against her hair.

"Whenever you like" after a minute of thinking he asked "Would you like to go have brunch tomorrow?"

"That sounds lovely" she replied with a smile.

"I'll pick you up at 10:30?"

"It's a date" she quipped happily, pressing another kiss to his lips before pulling back, laughing. "Okay, I'm going to go home now…if I don't..well…" she let the thought die and knew he understood her unspoken thought when she saw his eyes darken with desire. Erik walked her to the door, gave her one last kiss and watched her drive away.

Upon returning to her townhouse Chris saw a familiar car parked outside her house as she pulled into the driveway. With a sigh she got out and walked down the drive to meet Nicholas. When he attempted to give her the normal 'hello kiss' she pulled away, with a hand on his chest.

"Nick, we should talk" Wow…today seemed to be the 'we need to have a talk day'. Exhausted from the high emotions of the day she tiredly invited him into her house, but didn't offer any drinks to him, she didn't want him to get comfortable.

"I'm sorry Nick, you're really sweet and nice…but…we can't be more than friends. I'm sorry I led you on".

Nick gave her a carefree smile that didn't quite make it to his eyes "It's okay Chris, I knew you weren't totally in it with me. Some people just click" he gave a small shrug and turned to walk out of the townhouse.

"Nick! Wait, before you leave can I ask you a question…about the man in the fire, who stole your dad's work?"

"Sure" he crossed his arms and leaned against the doorjamb.

"What was his name?"

The young man frowned in thought "Um…Montgomery…something Montgomery." He closed his eyes as he thought "Erik or something like that. It was so long ago I don't really remember. I was pretty young and self involved." He gave her the boyish smile that made most women melt.

"Thanks Nick" her heart ached for Erik, her suspicion thoroughly peaked though. She just had this feeling that Nick's family was somehow involved in Erik's fire, though she didn't really know what good that would do her. With a mental shrug she gave him a smile and watched as he left. He was a good guy…at least; she thought he was a good guy.

Chris fell into bed with a smile on her face, she hadn't been this happy in a very long time. When she closed her eyes she could feel Erik's lips on hers, feel his hard body pressed to her own. It was a delicious feeling, one she hadn't experienced in years. Lying in the quiet solitude of her bedroom Christina was able to decipher a lot of the thoughts swirling around in her head.

First and foremost, she 'knew' without a doubt that she loved Erik. After Rodney died she didn't think she'd ever want to marry another man, but the idea of being Erik's wife wasn't all that scary. With a mental slap Chris realized she was completely running away with her thoughts. First they had to establish a comfortable relationship, become comfortable with each other and the person they were with the other. Only then could they consider a physical relationship…if they even wanted to. _Argh_. Christina pressed the heel of her palms into her eyes as her thoughts spun wildly out of control.

Not too far away in a sprawling house a man who had been determined to live a life of solitude was presented with a second chance…another opportunity to create something good…something he had thought he'd had with Alexis. The staff had long since been sent to bed so Erik felt more comfortable going into the music room, a room that he had received Chris in a number of times but had rarely used it for the express purpose of creating music. Since Alexis had died the inspiration to create music had been dormant. Sitting down at the long neglected piano he stroked the ivory keys gently, as one would stroke a lover before he pressed the keys down, the gentle sound a soothing balm to his heart.

With eyes closed his fingers started to dance across the keys, seemingly of their own accord. The tune was familiar, something he had composed for Alexis and had played for her on their wedding day. As he continued with the love song tears fell from his eyes, for years he had struggled to allow his past to be laid to rest, but something had always prevented it…it had always felt like a betrayal of the worst sort. As he listened to the soft, lilting notes he had composed so lovingly for his beautiful Alexis he could almost feel her with him…hear her in his head. Feel her kiss his perfect cheek. As the song came to an end his fingers remained on the keys, bent over them as the tears overwhelmed him. He had to do this…if he didn't he could never truly be with Christina in the way that she deserved. He had to let go of Lex and their daughter.

Head tipped back and tears streaming down his face Erik prayed in a way that he hadn't since before the fire, he prayed that his wife and daughter forgave him. For surviving the fire when he should have been the one who died and for how he had lived, as a ghost, in a way that Alexis would have raged about. She would have wanted him happy, not punishing himself. After some of the longest moments of his life Erik finally felt…at peace. He finally felt as though he could move on with his life, with Christina.

Music had been his outlet, had been his escape, and had been his passion. Madeline had loved to sit next to him; entranced by the spell he would weave with his piano. Ever since the fire he hadn't been able to bring himself to play any of the music he'd composed for his wife and child…until now. Another gift from Chris…he was finally able to forgive himself. Wiping away his tears Erik rose to his feet and stumbled upstairs to his room. He fell into a peaceful, deep sleep for the first time in nearly 5 years.

At some point in the wee hours of the morning Chris was able to fall asleep, the shrill beeping of her alarm seemed like it started just seconds after she fell asleep. Noting the time she hurried out of bed and prepared herself for her date with Erik. She decided on khaki capris, a soft blue tank top and denim jacket over that. Taming her curls took some time but she managed to beat them into submission, with the sides pulled back into a clip. By the time she was spritzing some perfume on her wrists Erik had knocked on the door. When Chris opened the door Erik couldn't help but smile, she looked amazing.

Christina's jaw had dropped when she'd seen the man before her, 'hot' didn't even sound like an accurate enough word to describe him. Dressed in black slacks with a dark blue button down shirt that had the first few buttons open and a leather jacket on…she thought she'd throw him against the door and kiss him senseless.

Once she was situated in the cozy interior that was filled with the comforting scent of leather and Erik's cologne she felt herself melt into the seat, feeling happier than she had in a very very long time. When she felt Erik's hand take hers and hold it she felt herself smile widely. The drive didn't take very long, when Erik pulled into the parking lot there were no other cars, Christina gave him an odd look but when he just smiled at her and got out, striding over to her side of the car to assist her out she didn't say anything, let him continue with the cryptic act.

Leading the way into the restaurant Erik couldn't hide the smirk, it felt good to be able to take her out and not feel the constant stares that he had become somewhat accustomed to. The door opened and revealed a man in a black suit, grey shirt and black tie. He held his hand out to Erik and shook the hand Erik had extended to him. "George, thank you for doing this"

The older man waved away the comment "For my best customer and investor? How could I do any less? Please, please come in. We have your table all ready for you" He looked at Christine and smiled "Erik said you were beautiful but that words pales in comparison to the truth Mademoiselle Davies"

Chris felt herself blush again as George bent over her hand and gave it an air kiss. Looking up at Erik she tucked herself against his body, enjoying the feeling of his arm wrapping around her waist and holding her there for a moment before following George who was bustling around, barking orders out in French.

Stifling a giggle Christina watched as one of the waiters tripped over a bus boy to assist her into her chair only to be warned off by an icy glare from Erik. Another waiter appeared with champagne flutes filled with what appeared to be orange juice, but after one sip she could taste the champagne that had been added, the bubbles tickling her nose as she sipped. It had been a long times since she'd had a mimosa.

Erik couldn't help but watch in appreciation as Chris sampled her drink, her blue eyes locked onto his own the entire time. He hadn't realized that such simple pleasures for himself would make her so happy.

"How did you manage this?" she inquired after a few minutes..

"About 10 years ago a friend of my father's had come to me, asking to invest in his fledgling restaurant. Knowing my father would've wanted to help where he could I agreed. Best investment I've made" he answered, tipping his own glass in her direction.

"This is amazing Erik, thank you" she placed her free hand on his and squeezed, her eyes softening. "No one has ever done anything like this for me before"

By that time the two young waiters had appeared with trays loaded with food, Christina wasn't entirely sure where to start. Deciding on crepes topped with fresh berries, some eggs and sausage she started working her way through the meal, closing her eyes in pleasure with her first heavenly bite. With a blush she saw Erik watching her carefully. After swallowing her food she pressed a hand to her chest "Oh my god, I think that's one of the best things I've ever put in my mouth" she declared with a chuckle.

Erik loved to see her cheeks color like that, more than that he loved to see her get so much pleasure out of something so simple like a meal. After a few long minutes of watching her eat he too started on his breakfast. Many platefuls later Chris was delightfully stuffed, she sipped her coffee and sat back in her chair, watching Erik haggle with George over the bill. Before that moment Chris had never thought she would ever see Erik out like this and playfully arguing with someone like he was. It brought her hope for the future.

As they drove away Erik glanced over at his precious cargo and rested his hand on top of hers. "Thank you for brunch Erik, it was lovely"

Erik brushed a kiss to the back of her hand before turning his eyes on the road in front of them. He drove them back to his house, guiding her into the backyard where to her dismay was a thriving garden that she had never seen before. He pulled her to a bench and sat down next to her…moment of truth, she deserved to know exactly what happened that night, about his past, about his life.

Upon her confused look he offered a hesitant smile "I thought it was time for me to tell you what happened that night."

"Erik, you don't have to. I don-" he interrupted her with a finger across her lips, silencing her.

"Yes I do Chris. You need to understand how I became the person I am today, if we're going to go any further then you need to know"

Nodding Chris took his hand and waited for him to begin.

His eyes firmly on the ground at his feet he took a few deep breaths before beginning.

"It was a fairly normal night I suppose. Lex and I had put Maddy to bed and we were enjoying some time to ourselves, I had been wrapped up in a big project at work and hadn't been home a lot, I had actually been out of the country for about a month or so. I had been fighting with one of my engineers at work" he looked at her "I believe you know a little bit about that. Although I take great exception to the accusation that I 'stole' his work. Markus Delaney was a bit awkward and bitter over the fact that my design had been chosen over his. It's as simple as that." He shook his head as he realized he was getting distracted.

"Anyway…Lex and I were sitting in front of the fire, enjoying a glass of wine" he hazarded a glance at Chris who was listening carefully, sympathy shining in her beautiful eyes. "I heard something outside, when I got up to investigate someone threw a brick through the window. I don't really know how the fire got started" his throat tightened with emotion and Chris wound an arm around his waist.

"I tried to run upstairs to Madeline's room, but…" he rubbed his forehead distractedly, his eyes shimmering with tears "I never made it. I woke up a few weeks later in the ICU; I had been in a coma, which the doctors said, saved my life. I…I didn't even get to see my wife and child buried" tears choked him.

Chris brushed her own tears away and pulled him into her arms, kissing his cheek, temple, neck anything she could reach. Erik buried his face in her neck, his arms tightly wrapped around her waist, holding her against him. Christina allowed him the time he needed to pull himself together, not wanting to rush him.

A long, painful few moments passed as Erik allowed the tears to fall, allowed himself to feel angry and hurt. With the tender kisses and embraces from Chris he felt a little bit of the hurt ebb away. Once he was composed he wiped his tears away and sat up straight again.

"They still haven't found out who set the fire to the house. I no longer care. I've allowed myself to feel angry and bitter for far too long. It's exhausting"

Christina nodded in agreement with him "But it's good to let yourself have that time to feel angry. If you don't you'll never move on"

"You helped, more than you'll probably ever know," he rasped out, clutching her hand almost desperately. "I've been aware of you for….quite a long time."

When he saw the question in her eyes he blushed a little "I would wait for you to run by my house every evening. I thought you were magnificent"

It was Chris's turn to blush. She let herself lean against him, his arm around her shoulders before he pressed a kiss to her temple before continuing on.

"I can't promise that I'll always be…easy to get along with." He flashed her a wry smile "That has been a flaw of mine since I was a child. But I promise I won't keep anything from you again. I hope you understand why I did…"

"Erik you never had to explain anything to me, I'm glad you feel comfortable enough to let me in a little bit. I don't want you to be anything more than you and 'you' are really incredible" she leaned in to press a soft kiss to his lips "I'm sorry so many bad things have happened to you"

"Good things too" his hand was tangled in her hair, tucking a stray curl behind her ear before cupping her chin "Thank you Christina" he pulled her to him and gave her a kiss, affectionate and loving. In response Chris maneuvered herself into his lap, arms tight around his neck as she deepened the kiss, forgetting everything and everyone around them.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey y'all, thanks for sticking by this story! I know it's been a slow start up but now I'm hoping things are going to start getting more interesting. I hope everyone enjoys this chappie!**

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Christina could feel Erik's fingers digging into her sides before one hand slid up into her hair to hold her so he could deepen the kiss. When they both came up for air Chris let her head fall to his shoulder, her own heaving from that kiss. The effect his kiss had on her. His breath teased her ear and neck, his hand grasping her hip, cherishing it. It had been so long since she'd felt anything close to this it was as if she were a young innocent discovering the joys to be had in another person's body.

She could feel the tenseness in Erik's body, his muscles taut with tension telling her that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. Chris nipped at his ear before pressing a hot kiss to his neck suckling gently. To say she was hurt when he pushed her away was probably an understatement. He saw that hurt flash in her eyes before she buried it away.

"I'm sorry sweetheart, it's not that I don't want you because god knows I do" he pulled her down for a searing kiss as proof of his desire "I want you so badly it hurts but I think we should allow this…relationship to progress a little further before we take that step"

Grudgingly she had to admit that she liked that idea, she was no longer a brash young girl who fell into bed with the first guy that tickled her fancy. Almost as though he was reading her thoughts he pulled her close before saying "I want to know that what we have is real and not just infatuation before we make love. I'm far too old for one night stands and much too conservative for friends with benefits"

Christina laughed "Where did you hear about Friends with benefits?" she asked still giggling.

"I'm not completely reclusive, I do own a television set" he replied with a grin.

"I see" she kissed his jaw "And I agree, doesn't mean I'm not disappointed" she said, wiggling a little bit, enjoying his groan before he set her on the bench next to him.

"Vixen" he said though his laughing eyes took the sting out of the insult.

"So where do we go from here then?" she asked grinning at him.

"I'm not entirely sure. It's been a long time since I 'dated'. I'm a bit out of practice"

"Well how about you come to my place for dinner tomorrow night?" she asked, resting her chin on his shoulder.

"I would love to darling but I have a business dinner I must attend" he traced her jaw line with a gentle finger "But I would like it if you would accompany me"

Feeling just a little bit of pride at that she smiled "I'd love that"

Erik pressed a soft kiss to her lips "Perfect, I'll be by to pick you up at 7pm. We're having dinner at the Victorian Manor"

"Fancy schmancy eh?" she teased "I have the perfect little black dress that-" her thought was cut off by his kiss.

"You tease me," he murmured before pulling her back onto his lap for deep kiss that had her grasping at his shoulders and pressing herself to him desperately. When they finally pulled apart they were both gasping for air.

"God this is a lot harder than I thought it would be" Christina muttered, delighting in his shiver as she kissed his neck.

"You are a wonderful balm for my poor battered ego" Erik said with a chuckle.

"Why is that?" she asked as she ran a hand through his hair, watching his eyes shut as his head pitched back in pleasure.

"Need you ask?" when she continued to look at him he sighed, "I'm not what society would consider a 'handsome fella'"

"That's bullshit Erik and you know it," she pressed a silencing finger over his lips when he began to protest. "You have the most unique green/yellow eyes, the color isn't the only thing that's unique. When you're angry or sad they turn dark green, just like they do when you're aroused" she blushed as she continued "Your lips" she traced a finger over them "Kissable" she did just that "Your jaw…strong" a finger traced it "your body?" she breathed, her hands running over his shoulders, down his back and up to his face again "Delicious. You're so graceful when you walk, like every movement is so effortless"

Enjoying his blush as she gushed about him Chris pulled his face to her level "Never think for a moment that you are unattractive. You're downright sexy Erik and I'm going to spend the rest of my days proving that to you" she kissed him, hotly, desperately.

When she thought she could take no more Erik pulled away, gasping for air and in shock. Her words had stirred more than just his heart and breathing…every word made him desire her even more. "Christina you are driving me mad" he muttered before claiming her mouth again, his hand starting at her hip before sliding up to the curve of her waist and a little further till it was resting gently against the side of her breast.

When she felt his hand against her breast she thought she would die. Before she could explore him he pulled away and sat her down on the bench before pushing himself off and away. It was painfully obvious that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. Damn his self-restraint!

"You make me feel terribly slutty for wanting you so damn bad"

He laughed before kneeling in front of her "You could never be that my dear, I'm very flattered you feel that way. I've never felt this way about anyone before…this loss of control, this desperate need to feel you" he kissed her "Because I feel that way I don't want to mess anything up. I want to know everything about you, what makes you sigh in pleasure, what makes you laugh, what makes you cry before I make love to you."

"You know if you weren't such a smooth talker I would not be nearly as willing to go along with this 'wait' plan" she teased with a quick peck to the lips.

Erik laughed before pushing himself to his feet and drawing her up with him "I have some work to do before my meeting tomorrow, will you be terribly mad if I have Stephan drive you home?"

"Not at all, I should probably grade some papers anyway. Thank you for today, for everything" she gave him a soft kiss and turned to hobble into the house.

* * *

A few hours later Erik was immersed in design specs and arguing Nadir with the proper output to input ratio for the pipeline he had designed and Chris was grading papers. The way 6th graders view the world was astounding, it was also a tad bit amusing to see how her students had taken the information about Napoleon and interpreted it.

The phone shocked her out of her paper grading stupor by the shrill ring of her cell phone. She glanced at the front screen and saw that it was an 'unavailable' number so she hit the ignore button and continued. Ten minutes later her phone rang again, a little annoyed now she turned the damn thing onto vibrate, hit the ignore button and turned back to her papers. As though the world was conspiring against her the phone started vibrating. Unable to take it anymore she picked up the phone and issued an angry "Hello?"!

Nothing but deep, heavy breathing came from the other end. Chris hung up and flung the phone onto the table. Slightly shaken up Chris went to her front door to make sure it was locked, after that was done she checked all her windows and the sliding glass door that led to her patio. Convinced that she was safely locked in she returned to her kitchen table and finished the papers. Her eyes burned from the strain of reading for so long, so she made herself a cup of tea and went to bed. From her bedside table her phone continued to ring every ten minutes. She didn't bother answering it; the heavy breathing sicko was making her a little nervous.

Christina finally fell into an uneasy sleep and woke up feeling cranky and out of sorts. Dragging herself to the shower and into her morning routine helped. Her students seemed to notice her bad mood so they behaved very well for her; once the final bell rang she collapsed at her desk as the final student scampered out of the classroom. She heard a knock and looked up to see Nick standing there, looking handsome and a bit…cocky? What was he up to?

"Bad night?" he asked, leaning against the doorjamb, arms crossed over his chest.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that" she tried to smile.

"Want to talk about it?"

Chris shook her head "Not really." She glanced at her watch and almost groaned she still had that business dinner to get through. "I should get home"

"I could drive you, maybe we could get a cup of coffee" Nick pushed himself away from the jamb and approached her desk.

Chris thought she'd made it clear that she didn't really want to see him in a social setting anymore. Something about him and she didn't know what it was, but something just set her on edge about him. That story that Erik told her and his side of the same story disturbed her, it shouldn't…it was almost six years ago but it still bothered her. Something about Nicholas was almost…predatory and she felt like the prey, a feeling she was not comfortable with at all.

"Nick, I told you I wasn't interested. I'm sorry but I have plans tonight"

"Another man?" He asked suddenly, his sherry brown eyes lit up in a way that made Chris's skin crawl.

Deciding that maybe honesty was best she nodded "Yes"

Nick's mouth formed a grim line "You should stay away from him, he's a bad man"

Christina frowned "I'm not sure that's any of your business Nicholas. Now, I have to go" she grabbed her bag, slung it over her shoulder and hurried past him, anxious to be away. What she had taken for charm was really just an act, a very well constructed façade that anyone could fall for.

Making sure her car doors were locked before she drove off, Chris looked out her rear view mirror and saw a form watching her drive away. This was getting creepier and creepier by the minute. Was Nick the heavy breathing sicko from last night?

Once she arrived home she put all her flustered thoughts firmly out of her mind. Ensuring to lock her front door she dropped her back in the closet in the entry way and hurried upstairs, she wanted to look perfect for Erik tonight.

* * *

By the time 7 O'clock rolled around Christina was a vision. Her black dress had spaghetti straps that criss crossed in the back and the skirt fell to her knees in a pool of silk and moved with her beautifully. The neckline was low but not obscene, she matched the dress with a diamond teardrop necklace that had been a gift from her parents and matching earrings. Her curly locks were pulled to the side, draped over her shoulder with only a few curls escaping. A spritz of perfume and a pair of stiletto heels and she was ready to go. Stuffing her cell phone and all the necessaries for the evening into a black clutch as she hurried to get the door when she heard the bell ring. She pulled the door open and nearly shrieked when she saw not Erik, but Nicholas on her doorstep!

"What the hell are you doing here? You can't be here! You have to leave, now Nick!"

"Wow you look great," he said, ignoring her protests. He attempted to push his way into her townhouse but she braced herself against the door and refused him entrance.

"Nicholas, I'm not playing some game with you. I'm 'telling' you to leave right now and if you don't I 'will' call the police!"

He pasted an expression of faux hurt on his face "Come on Chris, just coffee!"

Christina's look was a mix of confusion and anger, how had the sweet, fun guy she'd dated turn into 'this'?! Finally anger won out when she saw Erik's familiar SUV pull up to the curb.

Turning a furious glare on Nick as she elbowed past him out onto her stoop, ensuring to make sure her stiletto heel dug satisfyingly into his toe as she locked her door before storming down the stairs to the car where Erik had stepped out, a look of anger on his face.

She heard Nick's cry of protest as he followed her down the stairs "Seriously Chris?! Montgomery? The son of a bitch who stole my dad's work? Is that why you were asking all those questions?" he fired the questions off in rapid succession his anger increasing with each inquiry.

He grabbed her arm and wrenched her back "Answer me damnit!"

Erik dashed around the vehicle just in time to see Chris twist her hand in his, wrenching Nicholas's arm behind his back and slamming him against the SUV.

"What about 'go away' are you having a hard time understanding? My life is 'my' business, NOT yours! Who I involve myself with is MY concern and if you ever so much as lay a finger on me again I will end you so completely that your family will wonder what happened. Stay. The. Hell. Away. From. Me." She flung him away, satisfied by the look of total shock on his face.

Wisely he said nothing as he stalked back to his car, getting in and slamming the door. As he took off Chris turned around to face Erik, she could feel the anger flowing off of him in waves.

"Erik, I'm sorry." She attempted a shaky smile, unwilling to admit just how badly she was shaken and grasped his hand, bringing him back to the present "Hey, I'm sorry about him. I didn't expect him to be so…crazy"

His eyes focused on her finally and he forced a smile on his face "Are you injured?"

Not physically, she shook her head in the negative but he could feel her body trembling. He pulled her into the safe haven of his embrace and rested his cheek against her head "I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner my dear" he brushed a kiss to her head and pulled away to look at her, she looked scared…in a way he hadn't ever seen before and he'd seen her in the middle of a fire fight in a war zone.

He cupped a hand against her cheek and tipped her head up "Chris, I'm not mad at you. I'm upset that you are so shaken and that he bothered you. Would you like me to handle it?"

"No Erik, that's not necessary. I think he's learned his lesson. I just never suspected him to behave like that"

Erik brushed a curl away from her head and leaned in for a kiss "Shall we? I don't want to keep my business associates waiting"

"Yes, of course. I'm sorry Erik" she allowed him to open her door for her.

As he settled himself in the driver's seat he looked over at her and smiled "You look incredible tonight Christina"

The blush that crept up her cheeks was beautiful. "I apologize in advance if this meeting bores you, to tell you the truth these men bore me to tears and I usually have some idea of what they're talking about"

"Spending time with you is entirely worth it"

They pulled up to the restaurant that was an old Victorian manor that had been turned into a posh restaurant. The valet offered Erik his ticket and took the car off, Erik escorted her into the house, the scent of roses in the air for the entire house was surrounded by rose bushes. The entry way blended into the reception area, that had one time most likely been a salon, a dark wooded podium stood with a petite blonde all dressed in black behind it.

"Mister Montgomery, your party just arrived," she informed him with a wide smile, she gestured for them to follow. Expecting to be taken through the main dining room Chris was shocked to be taken back into the entry way and up the first flight of stairs. The room they entered had windows the entire way around the room, with one table set up in the center and full staff waiting to jump to action along the wall. Erik nodded his thanks to the young lady and steered Chris to the table with a hand on the small of her back.

Christina smiled when she felt his slight jerk when he encountered the smooth skin of her back rather than the silk of her dress. He nodded to the three men waiting at the table for them.

"Gentlemen, this is Christina Davies. Chris, this is Christopher Hayden, CEO of Hayden Engineering Company and Richard Ball, an Engineer from B&E Petroleum Distributors. And you of course know Nadir Khan"

Chris smiled at all the gentlemen, murmuring her 'hello'. Erik held her chair out for her before seating himself next to her.

Chris managed to look interested throughout dinner, though Erik was distracted through much of the meal, Nadir leaned over to her and kept her company while the men beat their chests and talked business. After what seemed like an eternity Chris saw the other men push their chairs out, collect their coats and leave with promises to send something to someone…Chris hadn't really been paying much attention.

Most of her dinner had been spent thinking about the incident before Erik picked her up. Her spider sense was tingling again but she couldn't exactly tell why. Surely Nick's behavior was odd but no reason for her suspicions to be roused, was there? With a mental slap Chris brought herself back to the present and saw Erik watching her carefully.

"Are you done my dear?" he asked in reference to the unfinished cup of coffee in front of her.

"Oh. Yes, I am. Thank you" she stood up and took Erik's hand as they walked out.

"I'm sorry if that was a terrible bore for you darling."

Chris pulled herself closer to Erik, pressing to his side "Not at all. I'm sorry, I've been distracted all evening haven't I?"

"Understandably. Would you care to talk about it?" he asked, before closing her car door. She hadn't even realized they had made it outside, nor that he had talked to the valet and handed his ticket over.

Once he was in the safety of the vehicle he looked over at her, her color had never returned fully and she looked concerned. "Christina, did he do anything?"

"Hmm?" she asked, confused before she understood the question "Oh. No, he had just showed up when you pulled up. I didn't realize he was going to be so pushy" she passed a tired hand over her eyes, warding off the headache that was forming. She pulled out her cell phone to check the time and gasped in shock to see 32 missed calls, all from an unavailable number.


	13. Chapter 13

**Two for one deal today! I just want everyone to notice the RATING CHANGE and be gentle. I've never written any explicit scenes before so this is a new experience for me, let me know if I messed it up!. If you are offended by explicit sex then read no further, this chapter is a solid R rating. Consider yourselves warned!**

* * *

When Erik heard her gasp he looked over "What?"

"N…N…Nothing, it's nothing" she forced a smile on her face and shoved the phone back into her clutch. "Just tired"

Erik's lips were set in a grim line "You've never lied to me before Christina" he sounded angry. Chris bit her lip and looked at him before giving an exhausted sigh.

"Last night, someone kept calling my cell phone. All from an unavailable number and the one time I did answer, all there was on the other end was heavy breathing. And now I have a lot of missed calls…from an unavailable number"

He held his hand out and waited for her phone, she handed it over, watching the set of his jaw as he scrolled through the call history. Finally he handed it back to her and stared out in front of them.

"Chris will you please let me have someone look into this?" he nearly pleaded, his eyes shining with unshed tears "I…I couldn't bear it to lose someone else."

Chris took his hand in his and pressed it to her cheek "Of course Erik, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you" she watched as a variety of emotions played across Erik's face, the most prominent one was fear, which she could understand. They rode in silence; she wasn't really paying attention to where they were going until they were pulling into his driveway.

"Erik? Wh-"

He interrupted her, putting the vehicle in park and turning to look at her "Will you please stay here tonight Christina?" he asked softly, his eyes pleading with her.

Anything to take away the fear on his face "Sure" she pulled him in for a kiss, her hand pressed against his cheek "But I don't want you to worry, I'm sure it's just some stupid prank. These things happen sometimes"

Erik said nothing as he exited the vehicle and walked around to her side. When she pushed herself onto the pavement of the driveway Erik drew her close to him and she could feel how painfully tense his body was. Once they were inside his house he summoned the head of security, someone she hadn't even known existed.

As it turned out Erik employed a full security force, complete with a state of the art security system. Apparently he was ensuring that the fate he suffered nearly 6 years ago didn't happen again. When the conversation was over he turned back to her and pulled her upstairs. Now that she was completely freaked out she wasn't sure she wanted to be alone. He opened the doors adjacent to his own room and showed her inside.

"I've sent someone to your place to collect your things, you can use these rooms anytime you'd like" his voice was tight, his mouth set in an angry line, his eyes sparked with tension

Chris took a breath and grasped his hands "Erik" one hand slid up his arm to his shoulder, then neck. "Don't let this ruin our night" she whispered, stepping closer to him "Forget about the past, forget about your fears" she let the other hand drift up to his shoulder as she pressed herself against him, tipping her head up to look him in the eye "Just be here, with me" she licked her lips and watched as his eyes darkened, his mouth parted slightly. "I'm tired of sleeping alone, waking up alone Erik." She whispered, her breath catching "I'm scared too, but I'm not going to let fear rule my life anymore Erik. What will be, will be" Chris let her hand move up his face and into his hair, his head pitched back almost immediately as she brushed his hair away from his face.

A groan escaped him; she could see the surrender in his eyes as he looked down at her. "I'm not asking for anything you are not ready for Erik, I'm not talking about making love" she licked her lips again "But I 'am' asking for your companionship, for you to hold me tonight…I can't promise I'll keep my hands off you completely but I will promise not to take it 'that' far"

Her little speech had rendered Erik mute…unable to form words altogether, though other parts of him throbbed painfully at her words. All he could do was pull her to him, crushing her against his chest as his lips ravaged hers, his body coming alive in a way that he hadn't thought possible. Christina could feel the proof of that pressed to her stomach, her arms tightening around his neck as she opened her mouth, letting her tongue dance with his in the most erotic way. Before she realized what was happening his hands were on her rear, pulling her up. Her legs wrapped around his waist, holding her above him as his hands ran up and down her back, igniting her skin on fire.

She heard a door slam and realized he had left the guest room and entered his own, kicking the door shut behind him. Erik deposited her on his bed, his hands braced on either side of her, his head bent to his chest and his breathing was ragged. Chris tipped his chin up so she could look at him.

"Erik?" she queried softly.

"I'm sorry Chris, I…I shouldn't have…" a finger on his lips silenced him.

"Erik, stop thinking so damn much" she smiled at him "I'm not asking you to make love to me because you're not ready. But I am asking you to let yourself experience the pleasure I have to offer you" she nipped at his ear, delighting in his sharp intake of breath.

His answer was a devastating kiss as he pushed her back into the mattress, covering her with the length of his body. Her legs came up to wrap around his waist, his hand trailed up one, starting from her ankle all the way up to her thigh where it skimmed up to her hip and even further to her breast. Head pitched back as Erik's lips found the sensitive skin of her bare chest her fingers dug into his hair as she gasped his name. His lips found hers again as her hands ran over his back, learning every inch of it. Her hands tugged his shirt out of the waistband of his pants so her hands could feel his skin.

As though she doused him with ice water Erik leapt off her, his hands digging in his hair a look of pain in his eyes. Chris was completely shocked and gaped at him in confusion and hurt.

"Erik?" her body felt cold with his gone "What did I do?"

Tears were falling down his cheeks, the look of total pain on his face threatened to break her heart. She could hear his gasping sobs as his legs gave out and he collapsed to the floor. Almost crawling to him, her own limbs still limp with pleasure she put her hand on his shoulder, hurt when he jerked away from her.

"I can't do this Christina. I can't let you do this" he sobbed, he looked at her with a wild look in his eyes "I can't let you see…feel…"

Confusion riddled her thoughts "Feel? Feel what? Erik, you're not mak-" but then she got it. His body…covered in scars, just like his face. It all led them back to that night, the fire.

Anger overtook his pain and he jerked around to her, ripping the mask off in anger and tossing it aside and grabbing her arms, pulling her up so she could see his scarred face. "Is this what you want Christina? Is this monster the 'thing' you want? I killed my wife and child! I can't kill you too!" he shouted at her.

Christina felt the tears falling down her cheeks, not because of his face but because of the heart wrenching pain in every muscle of his body. "You didn't kill your wife Erik, she died in a terrible accident! You're NOT going to kill me! You need to put your past behind you and you need to accept what I'm willing to give you!"

She could feel his grasp loosening a little so she could maneuver in front of him; she took his face in her hands, ignoring his sharp gasp and his attempts to move her hands. With one hand she gently ran her fingers over his melted cheek, his lips were trembling, his eyes slammed shut. Her fingers explored his face, up his nose and up to his brow.

"Erik, look at me" when he finally complied she kissed him "You couldn't help what happened to Alexis and Madeline. But you 'can' help what happens with me. I'm here Erik, with you. I'm alive and so in love with you Erik. I want you in every way there is to desire and want a person." She brushed a lock of hair away from his forehead before resting her head against his "But you have to give yourself to me Erik, all of yourself. Not just pieces here and there."

The pain in his eyes threatened to kill her resolve but he hung his head, resting it on her shoulder "I want to Christina, Christ I want to. I'm scared. What if I forget?"

Using her thumbs Christina wiped away his tears "You won't forget Erik, I would never ask you to. Always remember them, always love them. Just let me love you too, let me in," she pleaded, pressing a kiss to his hair "I don't care about your face or your body. I love the man beneath all that. Let me love you"

His kiss took her by surprise; it was a kiss of longing, desire, passion and love. His fingers threaded in her hair, pulling her closer, his tongue plunging into her mouth, taking everything she had to give. Effortlessly he lifted her into his arms and carried her to his bed, placing her on the mattress with extreme care before stepping away "No going back Christina, this is the point of no return" he rasped out harshly, his eyes boring into her own.

Chris pressed a hot kiss to his lips before sitting on her knees, her nimble fingers undoing each button on his dress shirt, with all undone she spread his shirt with her hands on his skin, his gasps of pleasure shooting right to her core where a familiar warmth and tingle was starting. He reached for her but she remained out of his grasp "I have scars just like you Erik, not nearly as extensive as you…but scars just the same."

As she had been talking she had also been lifting her dress over her head. Feeling suddenly very naked she felt a stab of embarrassment before his heated gaze stamped it down. For a moment Erik's brain couldn't process anything other than her nakedness…but then his brain caught up and he saw the puckered white scar on her shoulder, her thigh and a jagged scar running along her side. His fingers traced them reverently before his lips followed.

"You are a work of Art Christina" he gasped as her hands touched his chest then drifted to his stomach. His finger lingered on the jagged scar that ran across her side.

"A third round from that fire fight. They hadn't realized it had grazed my side until you got me to the aid station. My body armor hid the blood"

His eyes lifted to meet hers; she'd been through just as much as he had. Suffered loss, just as he had. He finally understood what she meant by letting her in, letting her love him. He could no longer hate himself for what had happened. All he wanted to do was remember…and love her.

"Christina…I…I haven't done…it's been a long time since…" he couldn't finish the thought though and fortunately she understood what he was trying to say.

"Erik, this isn't a test." She pushed his shirt off his shoulders and pressed her own chest to his, gasping at the feeling of his skin on hers "All I'm asking you to do is" she kissed him "enjoy me and what I plan on doing to you. I promise we won't go too far" she kissed him again "But if I can't do something I think I might go mad" she teased, feeling relieved when she felt and heard his own chuckle "Me too love"

With a shy smile Chris worked his belt till she heard the hiss of it being pulled from the belt loops on his pants, her fingers fumbled at the button to his trousers for a moment as a wave of nervousness hit her. Pushing his pants to the floor and looking up into his eyes as she heard them whoosh to the floor she leaned back on her haunches so she could look at him. Magnificent…that was the only word that came to mind…that and 'wow'.

Erik pulled the covers back to expose the cream sheets before he settled himself on them, pulling her to him. "Christ you're determined to make this difficult aren't you?" he muttered when she nipped his neck, her hands roaming his chest and stomach, fingers grazing just slightly south of the boarder.

Her mischievous chuckle echoed off the walls of his room. She pushed him onto his back, kissing his lips, then his neck, and then his collarbone before trailing her lips down his stomach and back up. His fists were tightly clenched at his sides; his breathing was heavy and erratic. "Relax Erik, I promise you'll like what I have in mind. Trust me"

Forcing himself to do as she commanded he nodded, letting his head fall back to the pillows only to shoot open again as he moaned when he felt her fingers graze him, a place that hadn't felt a touch other than his own in nearly 6 years. He thought he would die when her hand plunged under the waistband of his boxer briefs, his back arched almost and another, louder moan escaped. He looked down to see her watching him with a glazed expression in her passion filled eyes. She knew she would have to take it slow, it had been a long time for both of them and she was determined to make it amazing and unforgettable for both of them.

Covering his body with hers so she could kiss him, his hands cupped her face lovingly before she moved away again. Her hand found its way back to where he so desperately wanted it, hissing through his clenched teeth he watched her looking like an erotic goddess above him. The way her hand moved on him, soft but hard.

She felt him throbbing under her hand, a drop of moisture forming on the tip. She spread it around with her thumb watching him thrash under her, knowing she had taken him as far as she could. Before disappearing down his body she kissed him and murmured, "Trust me". What did she mean by that?

His answer came when he felt her mouth envelop him completely, he couldn't stop the "Oh god!" that came out of his mouth, on their own his fingers dug into her hair as her tongue worked magic on him, taking him to a place he hadn't been to in such a very long time. "Christina" he gasped, powerless in her grasp, unable to do anything more but thrust into her mouth with an urgency that belied how desperately he needed his release. Her wicked tongue was dancing with him in a delicious way, he could feel his release coming…"Christina…I'm…I don't…" he couldn't form the words but she knew what he was trying to tell her. She grasped his hand, her eyes showing him she understood before suckling harder, ensuring he lost control soon. "Oh god! I'm…oh Christina!" he cried out, his back arching as he filled her mouth with himself, unable to hold back any more. His entire body trembled along with his release. When he stopped trembling she crawled up to him, he pulled her to him and kissed her, tasting himself mixed with her own exquisite taste. "Mon dieu Christina, I don't know if I can survive you"

Chris grinned at him, letting her head fall to his shoulder as his arms tightened around her. His cheek pressed to her head, his hands caressing her back, her sides, and her breasts anything he could reach. "I think that a return of favor is called for, no?" he asked, grinning as his hand caressed her stomach, pelvic bone before he peeled her panties away. His hand delved between her thighs, kissing her and groaning at the same time when he felt how turned on she was, perfect, waiting for him. His finger found the spot she so desperately wanted him to find, her back arching as he had done not long before. His fingers wreaked havoc with her senses along with his lips as he kissed her, his other hand running up and down her back, pressing himself to her as he continued his torture.

"Erik" she gasped, looking up at him, her eyes wide and glazed with pleasure…pleasure that he was giving her. He could feel her responding to him, her hand gripped his wrist and her mouth parted in a loud groan as he felt her shutter, her own release hitting her in waves. Hearing her voice call his name over and over was a most powerful aphrodisiac; he wanted to bury himself in her, find his pleasure in her…but knew he couldn't, not yet. Parts of him refused to hear reason. It became easier when she stopped gasping his name, letting herself fall to the bed and curl against him.

"Oh god Erik, that was…" but there were no words, all she could do was pull his face down for a gentle kiss, their passion burned for the moment. Erik knew he would want her every night, every morning and every moment in between. He would never stop loving or desiring the goddess curled in his embrace.


	14. Chapter 14

**Okay well the action is gonna heat up in this chapter, I'm trying to get the Nicholas storyline moving along because I know many of you are anxious to see how thats all going to work out. Hope this chapter is enjoyable!**

* * *

Erik woke when he felt Chris shifting in her sleep, feeling her skin against his reminded him that the previous night had not been a dream. The tears, crying, fear and everything else had been real. In her sleep Christina pressed a kiss to his collarbone, her head resting peacefully on his shoulder, her arms wrapped around him, her legs entwined with his. He brushed a stray lock away from her eyes, letting his finger graze her brow and down her jaw. She was really here with him, loving him, protecting him…even from himself. This precious angel had given him something priceless, something precious. He knew he had to keep her safe at all costs. Remembering the phone calls and that boy's odd behavior he tried to ease himself away from her but she woke, her sleepy eyes searching the dark before finding him.

"Erik? What are you doing? Are you okay?" she asked tiredly, pushing herself up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"I'm fine my love, I didn't mean to wake you darling. Go back to sleep" he murmured pressing a kiss to her lips.

Chris flopped back down onto the mattress and allowed him to pull the blankets up around her bare shoulders as he slid out of bed.

"Make your conversation with whomever you're going to drag out of bed quick" she muttered from under the blankets "I'm cold without you"

After a moment of deliberation he realized nothing could be done right now at this hour anyway so he slid back into bed, gathering her to him as he lay back down. Smiling with satisfaction that she got her way Chris worked her body next to his, head on shoulder. "What's on your mind?" He had assumed she'd gone back to sleep.

"I need to find out who's been calling you." He whispered into the dark.

"My own guardian angel eh?" she teased, picking her head up to look at him. He still looked uncomfortable without his mask; she let her fingers trace a scar on his cheek, causing him to look away, turning his face away from her. "Hey" she said softly, turning his face back to hers "What's that all about?"

"I don't want you to…" she silenced him with a kiss.

"Hush Erik. Remember, I have scars too. I don't care about yours." She pulled him in for a deep kiss with an unspoken promise of a thousand more "Stop trying to hide from me Erik, you can't get rid of me now, you're stuck" she teased "I can't imagine a life without you now. I need you Erik, I need you," she murmured her eyes filling with tears.

He leaned down and pressed a kiss to each eye, his thumbs brushing across her cheeks "I'm yours Chris. I'm sorry. It will take some time…"

"I know, I understand. Just don't push me out, let me help"

Erik pulled her to him for a kiss "For now how about we try to get some more sleep. It's early and I don't want you to have a hard time at work tomorrow"

* * *

This set the pace for the next few weeks…

Christina returned to Erik's house every day after work, there were no more disturbing phone calls, no more unexpected visits from Nicholas who stayed away from her at school, he even went so far as to clear out of the break room when she would enter. It was a peaceful few weeks.

Every night Christina went to Erik's bed, sometimes they fooled around and others they were content to just hold each other. After nearly a month Chris felt it was time for her to return to her own townhouse, overcoming many objections from Erik…many angry objections.

"I don't think it's safe!" his voice was somewhat muffled because she was in his gigantic closet but she could still hear how angry he was.

"Erik, for the last time" she took a long deep breath, trying to reign in her temper "I'm not going to let anyone chase me out of my own damn house!"

She walked out of the closet and nearly ran into Erik, unmoving with hands on his hips, his lips almost entirely gone, a bad sign. "I'm not going to let some sick bastard run me out of my own house. I'm not the type to bend to intimidation"

He grabbed her shoulders "See sense woman! Anything could happen to you!"

Christina wrenched herself out of his grasp "Yes, I could get struck by lightning or I could get hit by a car! Again! I could get shot! Again! Damnit Erik I have to do this" she shouted at him.

His face paled, his hands clenching into fists, a sure sign that he was attempting to keep his temper in check as well…and losing the battle.

With her last article of clothing packed she grabbed the handle of her suitcase and pulled it off the bed.

"Please don't look like you're never going to see me again. I'll be here for dinner tomorrow" she set her suitcase down and took his hands in hers, feeling the tension in them. "Erik, please don't be mad. But I 'have' to do this. It's been weeks and everything has been quiet. I'll be fine"

He nodded his head once, gave her a quick peck on the lips and stalked out of the bedroom, leaving her to see herself out. Nadir met her at the door, looking a bit harried. She gave him a wry smile "I'm sorry if this is causing problems for you Nadir."

"Everything with Erik is dramatic and difficult. You did nothing, I feel you're doing the right thing."

"Thanks Nadir, I'll see you for dinner tomorrow" she pulled her suitcase out the door behind her.

Her first thought when she walked in the door to her townhouse was relief. Everything was just as it should be, everything would be fine. She unpacked her clothes and made herself a cup of tea and settled onto her couch to watch some TV. As the night continued she couldn't help but feel like she was being watched. Erik had made her paranoid! She returned her attention to the screen, ignoring her gut that was screaming 'danger'.

Christina fell asleep in front of her TV and probably would have slept through the night if not for the sound of breaking glass coming from her bathroom. Her senses on alert she sprang off the sofa, grabbing her cell phone in the process. She hurried up the stairs, ignoring the pain in her leg, adrenaline overcoming everything else. The window was broken but not enough for a person to climb through.

Hurrying back downstairs, dialing 911 as she did she heard a second 'thump' from the bathroom. Without thinking she raced outside, yanking her keys off the hook as she darted past them in the hallway making a beeline for her car when she was tackled to the ground. Reacting with all her soldier instincts she began to claw and bite the person who was attempting to hold her down. She felt herself land a hard blow to their face, pushing them off of her.

The whine of sirens could be heard coming down the street, her assailant grunted with her last blow and hurried off into the woods at the end of her cul de sac. Someone dragged her up, she screamed and whipped around to see Erik's pale, very angry face looking at her. It was then that she smelled smoke; looking up in horror she saw the smoke billowing out of her bathroom window.

After a moment she realized Erik was trying to talk to her, yelling at her.

"What? What?" she yelled back, the shock was wearing off.

"Are you alright?" he asked in a way that told Chris he was barely keeping it together.

She grasped his arms "Yes, I'm fine. I…there was someone out here, I ran outside to get to the car and…there was a person here, they tackled me and I fought him" she sniffled a little, not even realizing she had been crying until she felt Erik's fingers swiping away the tears.

He pulled her into his embrace, rubbing her back as she cried. She hardly noticed the swarming police officers and firemen. It seemed like an eternity before the fire was under control; Christina's neighbors had all been roused from their sleep by the lights and hubbub. Someone had returned her cell and keys, which she had apparently dropped in the scuffle. After a thousand inane questions from the Police, after she'd given her statement they allowed Erik to take her home. The shock had set in again, rendering her speechless and limp. Erik had to guide her upstairs to his bedroom and into his bathroom. She was covered in dirt from her fight and smelled of smoke.

When the warm water hit her skin she came to, Erik heard her gasp and turned back around to make sure she was okay. She was standing in his shower, shaking looking stunned and dazed. Quickly stripping off his clothes he joined her and pulled her to him, rubbing her back.

"I'm sorry Erik…I guess you were right" she said softly after a long moment. That startled a chuckle out of him.

"In this case I hate being right." He brushed her wet hair away from her face; she didn't have any wounds from her fight though he felt bad for the poor bastard who messed with her.

Feeling her arms wrapped around his waist, feeling her body pressed to his reminded him of their many nights together which started a chain reaction in his body that he couldn't stop…

Christina chuckled and tipped her head to look up at him, not caring if the water was now streaming into her eyes "You're my knight in shining armor Erik Montgomery" she pulled him down for a kiss, her arms pulling him closer as she deepened the kiss. Fear, it turns out is a powerful aphrodisiac. Erik pressed her against the wall to the shower, running a hand down her body, over her hip and under her thigh, holding it up and hooking her leg over his hip as he ground against her.

"Chris, please don't ever leave again," he rasped against her neck as he kissed it, her jaw before claiming her lips again.

Christina buried her face in his neck, her fingers digging into his hair "I won't. I'm sorry Erik" she could say no more because he possessed her lips again with a desperate kiss, frantic hands roamed her body, as much as she wanted him she was exhausted. Her body started to go limp against him; she continued to return his kisses but not nearly as exuberantly as before. Erik pulled back to see her eyes drooping though she was trying desperately to keep up with his attentions. His lust was spurred more by fear than anything, now that he saw she was safe and nothing was going to happen to her he could let himself relax.

Tenderly he washed her hair, taking care not to pull it too much, and then he washed her body. She leaned against him so trustingly, watching him with sleepy eyes as he shut the water off and wrapped her in a bathrobe and swept her into his arms to carry her into the bedroom. He laid her on the bed and brushed her wet curls away from her face and kissed her.

"Would you like some tea?"

She shook her head "No, I just want to sleep." She grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the bed with her "I don't think I was that scared when I was getting shot at. All I could think of was 'Oh my god, Erik was right'" she sighed and rubbed her eyes "I thought I heard the fire chief say something about a fire bomb? Who would firebomb my place?" she wondered frantically.

"Shh, you should get some sleep love you're exhausted" he pulled out a pair of his sweats and a t-shirt, they'd be huge on her but they'd have to do until they could procure her something more appropriate.

She ignored the pants and pulled the t-shirt on before sliding under the covers "Are you coming to bed?"

Erik nodded, pulling underwear on and slipping beneath the sheets with her, pulling her to him, safe in his embrace. He pressed his lips to her forehead as he heard her breathing deepen and even out.

* * *

A call to the principal of the school she worked at the night before ensure that Chris didn't have to go to work the next morning, she had been through quite an ordeal and she had a meeting with the fire chief so she could go through the remains of her townhouse to collect what she could. Erik had cancelled all his meetings so he could go with her.

Christina stood in front of her townhouse, the charred shell that had once been home…a home meant for her and Rodney. Tears were streaming down her face as she walked through her home, walls blackened and a sickly smoky smell in the air that threatened to choke her. Glass crunched beneath her shoes, startling her every time she stepped on a shard. The pictures that had once hung on the wall were now sopping messes on the floor, trod on by numerous firemen.

Under her coffee table, where all her precious photo albums had been stored was a disaster. Crumpling to her knees, heedless of the glass and other various dangers poking into her legs she reached trembling hands out to pick up the photo album that she had so lovingly put together, it was a picture show of her life with Rodney. All she had left of him. The tears started falling, one drop, two onto the cover that was smudged with soot. She heard the two men behind her, shifting their weight from one foot to the other. When he could take no more Erik pulled her into his arms, where she buried her face in his neck and cried.

It was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do, next only to burying Rodney. What few possession she was able to salvage were piled into a truck and sent over to Erik's. An insurance agent had arrived to perform an inspection so they could cut her a check for the damages. Fortunately her father had insisted on her getting some kind of renters insurance so she would be able to replace everything that had been damaged or destroyed. Erik watched, with pain in his heart as Chris floated through the days a mere shell of what she had been. Much like he had been after he'd gotten out of the hospital he assumed. There was nothing he could do to ease her pain; he knew she had to suffer it just like he had.

* * *

A week after the fire a detective from the police station came to talk to Chris and him surprisingly. Principal Snyder had been kind enough to give Chris an extended leave of absence so she could get her affairs settled.

Taking a seat in his office, Christina nestled against his side, her hand firmly in his with Detective Michaels across from them Erik waited to see what the good fellow had to say.

"I'm sure you're both wondering why I wanted to see both of you." He gave Chris a smile "After hearing your statement and speaking to Mister Montgomery I did some digging and I found the report about your fire six years ago sir. After speaking to the detective who had been in charge of your case Mister Montgomery he sent me his case file. I found some disturbing similarities between the cases. Particularly in the method the suspect used in starting the fires. The same accelerant was found in your bathroom Ms. Davies that was used to start your fire" he said looking at Erik "So the case has been reopened and the Feds have been called in"

"The FBI? Why in gods name are they sticking their fingers in the mix?" Erik demanded.

"Because we believe it's the same person, he's also responsible for three other fires in Delaware and New Jersey. He's crossed State Lines and four of the five fires involved members of the civilian military consultant population. Some of the most brilliant minds that have extensive knowledge of top-secret files and projects are being terrorized by this serial arsonist. You, Ms Davies are the only odd duck in this mix. He or she have been very specific in their victims, you don't fit the profile."

Christina nodded as she took the information in, she couldn't help but feel that Nicholas had something to do with this but that seemed too easy, too obvious. Erik voiced her unspoken concerns, Detective Michaels nodded "We've spoken to Mister Delaney, so far he as an alibi but we're checking the validity of it. I'll keep you in the loop about the investigation"

"Thank you Detective." Christina murmured weakly. There really was nothing more to say she supposed, she was tired…bone deep tired. How had things turned so shitty so quickly? Erik had left to show the detective out but returned quickly, his own face as pale as Christina's.

Swallowing her own grief Chris angled herself on the sofa and took Erik's hand in hers "Are you okay?" his eyes were distant, lost in the past. She wasn't even sure he's heard her.

He nodded after a while, though she could see that his jaw was still clenched. Chris maneuvered her way onto his lap and rested her head on his shoulder, relaxing when his arms came up around her and his lips brushed her forehead. "Yes my dear, just surprised is all. And worried for you. You could be at risk, since you seem to be an inconsistency in his pattern…it could be personal for him now, which makes it dangerous for you."

She saw the sense in his words "I suppose, but I can't just hole myself up here in your house waiting for him to try again. What kind of life is that to be controlled by fear?"

His cheek rested against her head so she couldn't see his face but she knew she'd struck a nerve. "I'm sorry Erik, I just meant that this is exactly what this person wants. For me to be afraid, he thinks he has power over me. I need to prove to him that he doesn't."

His finger tipped her chin up so she was looking at his face "Chris, I love that you are so strong and you refuse to let anything get the best of you. I'm not asking you to hide, I'm asking you to be smarter then the person who is trying to kill you"

Christina saw the tears shimmering in his eyes as he continued, "My heart stopped when I got the call saying your townhouse was on fire. I thought I'd lost you" his voice caught and a tear slipped down his exposed cheek "When I saw you rolling on the ground while that person was trying to kill you" he almost couldn't say the words "Christina I'm begging you, please back down…just this once" he ended by resting his forehead on hers, his eyes closed, lips quivering as he attempted to control himself.

Chris cupped his exposed cheek with her hand, letting her thumb wipe away his tears "I promise Erik, I'll cooperate with you on this. I didn't mean to hurt you"

His eyes opened, pain still shimmering in his golden green eyes. Chris gave him a soft kiss before letting her head fall to his shoulder wondering if they would ever have any peace at all?


	15. Chapter 15

**I'm kicking things up a notch, BAM! Both with the out of bedroom action and the in bedroom action. After all I put Erik through I had to give him a little lovin, so all you who are too young, read no further and the same goes for those who object to explicit sex, consider yourself warned!**

**Disclaimer: Still Don't own POTO**

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Stephan found them just like that, foreheads pressed together and Chris curled in Erik's lap. He announced dinner and tactfully disappeared.

Christina wiped away the last of his tears and kissed him "Are you hungry?"

He shook his head, burying his face in her neck and breathing deep. The smell of Vanilla comforted him, her hair felt like silk against his cheek. He felt her cheek resting against his head, her breath on his ear.

Erik knew in that moment he'd give his own life for hers, he never got the opportunity to tell Alexis how he felt the night she died. In his heart he knew that she knew that he loved her, but he always felt guilty for not being able to 'tell' her.

Suddenly, without warning he grasped her face with her hands and pulled her in for a kiss "I love you Christina" another desperate kiss "Everything I do is for you"

He could feel her confusion in her kisses and body, but soon she was returning his ardor. Running her fingers through his hair, pressing her body to his and gasping his name when his lips started burning a trail from her lips down her jaw to her neck. Gathering her in his arms he pushed himself off the loveseat and hurried out of his office.

Once inside their haven he kicked the doors shut and set her on the bed and pushed her down into the mattress with his body. She struggled to inch her way onto the bed without breaking contact with his lips, her hands clawing at him, fumbling with the buttons to his shirt. His own trembling fingers made quick work of the button and zipper to her skirt, tossing it behind him carelessly. Letting his hands start from her ankles and work their way up her calves, over her knees and to her thighs he explored her, drinking in every sensation.

Christina wasn't nearly so calm, she lost patience with the buttons of his shirt and ripped it open, ignoring the buttons that went flying across the room. His pants were disposed of quickly, her hands running over his back and grasping his shoulders to pull him down so they were skin to skin. Erik rolled onto his back, pulling Chris on top of him with his hands disengaging her bra and sent it sailing.

Once her breasts spilled out in front of him, he cupped each one reverently letting his thumbs brush over her nipples, delighting in her shivers of delight before she possessed his lips with her own. Her hand had drifted between them, stroking him through his boxer briefs, a low chuckle escaping her lips when he hissed through clenched teeth and pitched his head back. Chris released him, letting her fingers brush the skin on his stomach and chest before reaching up and gently taking his mask off, kissing him as she did to ease the sting. He still hated to be intimate with her without it, but she'd insisted. They both knew that tonight they wouldn't stop, they had waited long enough for the final display of intimacy and love that they had both been so hesitant to engage in. Up till now it had been anything but…and it was driving both of them mad.

As she always did she kissed his right cheek, ignoring his hiss of protest before moving her lips down his jaw to the corner of his mouth and back up to his non-existent brow line before he claimed her mouth again, his hands running up her thigh to her waist and finally settling back on her breast. Christina broke the kiss and looked up, his eyes glazed with pleasure as she knew her own were.

"Please Erik…no stopping this time" she whimpered, silently begging him for that which he so desperately wanted.

"Oh god yes" he groaned before kissing her again, but only for a moment. He wanted to do this right, wanted to take his time, wanting to make sure she enjoyed this.

He sat up and pulled the covers back, allowing her to wiggle her way under them. She knew she had to let him do this his way…he never had to say how nervous he was at the idea of making love, she just knew even if she thought it was ridiculous.

His eyes roamed over her body, his eyes darkening with desire as he did. "You're so magnificent Christina. So beautiful" he murmured as he leaned in to kiss her neck, collarbone, nibbling a path between her breasts, one hand fondling one as his lips covered the other with kisses. He felt her hands dig into his hair, clutching at him and gasping his name as his mouth moved to the other breast. His lips moved away, over her rib cage and down her stomach, kissing both pelvic bones as his hands peeled away her panties.

Erik moved back up her body, one arm moving under her neck pulling her closer his other hand following the same trail his lips had made a moment ago. His hand dipped between her thighs, finding the spot that she desperately wanted him to. Her back arched as she begged for a kiss, for an end to the desire that was burning through her every pore. His fingers began a circular motion, he groaned against her neck when he felt how hot and wet she was…how ready for him she was.

Her hips ground against his fingers as he could feel her end near, he could feel the tightly coiled tension in her body as he increased his pressure on her most sensitive spot, her gasps and moans sending a jolt right to his groin that was painfully calling for his attention. He thought the fun would be ended when she shattered under him, his eyes slammed shut as he put an iron grip on his control, feeling her fingers digging into his skin as she cried out his name wasn't helping that at all.

Heavy breathing was the only sound in the room; each occupant could hear their own heartbeats drumming in their ears. "Erik, please" she kissed him, her hands cupping his beloved face as she ground her hips against his own, delighting in the gasp he released when he felt her hot wetness against him.

Sliding himself over her, between her legs he took a few deep, calming breaths. He hoped he had the finesse to pull this off without looking like a rutting youth. Sensing his discomfort Christina kissed his jaw, ran her hands up his back splaying her hands across it's muscled firmness and hitching her legs over his hips, waiting patiently for him to pull himself together enough to take her. The trembling in his entire body told her how badly he wanted to take her.

Finally he summoned the courage, his eyes locked to hers he slowly slid himself into her, groaning with each incredible inch "Oh god Christina" he groaned into her ear. Her legs locked around his waist, her back arched under him causing her to tighten around him which pulled another groan out of his throat. His arms were shaking from his effort to not just start thrusting, giving no thought to her pleasure. Chris kissed his neck and nibbled on his ear before saying "Erik if you don't do 'something' I'm going to go crazy here"

That startled a laugh out of him before he plunged into her, his eyes still locked on hers as he withdrew and plunged again. She laughed with him, loving the sound of his laughter, loving the look in his eyes as he took her. She was soon meeting his thrusts, arching her back till she was completely off the bed and crying out his name. He held her to him as he felt the pressure starting to build and knowing it wasn't going to be long. Burying his face in her neck he started thrusting, giving in to the urge to just plunge into her with abandon. Her fingers were digging into his back, her legs tightened around his waist and she was frantically meeting his thrusts, crying out in pleasure as she felt herself starting to fall head long into pleasure that was ricocheting through her body. When he felt her starting to clench around him he knew that he was done for. Hearing her cries echoing through the room, feeling her warmth tightening on him and feeling her skin against his threw him over the edge. With a groan and her name on his lips he gave her his release, filling her.

Completely and totally spent Erik collapsed onto her but rolled to his side, pulling her with him not willing to disengage from her body just yet. Her frantic breaths against his chest felt unreal, her hand was resting over his heart and her head was buried in his neck, brushing kisses there in between gasps.

Erik let his hands roam over her body, loving the knowledge that she was completely his to cherish and love. Her pressed a kiss to her hair before tipping her head up to kiss her lips. Neither one said a word…no words were necessary for what they had just shared. Each was content to rest in the others arms, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking. Only when the air around them started to cool did Erik pull the sheet up around her bare shoulders.

The only sound in the room was the chiming of the clock, they had spent more time in the room then they had realized. When she heard the soft rumble of Erik's stomach she chuckled "I suppose our dinner is cold by now"

He chuckled, kissing her temple "I'm sure Chef kept everything warm for us. It would seem an insult to let his efforts go to waste though"

Reluctantly Christina pushed herself out of his embrace "I agree" she smoothed her hair down while Erik pushed himself out of bed to find something for her to wear. She still had to replace many of her clothes. An emergency shopping trip had been made on her behalf to procure some immediate necessities. Returning in his underwear and a t-shirt he handed her her own panties and a pair of yoga pants and shirt. Chris wriggled into the panties and pants before searching for her bra.

Once they were set to rights Erik held out his hand, pulling her to him and pressing a long kiss to her lips. One that she was reluctant to break but hunger won out of lust…for now.

Dinner turned out to be fantastic; they ate hungrily for the first few minutes. Once their grumbling tummies were satisfied they were able to sit back and have a discussion.

"Tomorrow I will accompany you on your shopping trip if you'd like" he said, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"You don't have to Erik, I know you hate crowds and you've been absent from your business for a while on my account" she saw the flash of disappointment in his eyes so she amended her statement with "That would be nice, thank you Erik"

Erik gave her a wry smile "I've created this business so that if I wanted to I could take an extended vacation to Bora Bora and not worry about it falling around my ears. My board of directors and Nadir are perfectly capable of handling things for a while. You are much more important to me than the business"

"Then I would be happy for the company. I have to admit I'm completely paranoid now; I keep looking over my shoulder thinking someone is going to sneak up on me. Outside of a war zone I've never felt like this and I'm not sure I enjoy it."

Raising his wine glass and taking a sip before speaking Erik said, "It's disconcerting. But I assure you Detective Michaels and my security staff are working around the clock to find Nicholas"

"Erik, we don't know for sure if it 'is' Nicholas. I grant you it's very suspicious and he seems likely to be the suspect I'm a firm believer in 'innocent until proven guilty'" she took another bite, watching his jaw clench knowing how hard this was for him. All the old hurts that she had just started to help him deal with were being ripped open again.

* * *

Across town Detective Andre Michaels rubbed his eyes, tired from staring at coroners reports, witness statements and pictures for what felt like hours. Something wasn't adding up right…he 'knew' he was missing something. He just couldn't see it right now.

Someone knocked on the door to his office "Someone here to see you, says his name is Nicholas Delaney"

"Show him in"

Mister Delaney looked a bit concerned; no doubt he'd realized why he had been called down to the station. "Something I can do for you Detective?" he asked.

"Yes, where were you last night between 2am and 2:30?"

Nicholas scoffed "I was asleep"

"Can anyone verify that for me?"

Nicholas looked shocked by that question "Am I being accused of something?"

Andre stood up, away from his desk and held up a picture. The picture was of Erik, his wife and daughter taken 7 years ago. "Do you recognize these people?"

The young man's eyes narrowed, as he looked at the picture "Yeah, some guy my dad worked with when he was working for the military as a consultant"

"It looks like your father has done that in a number of different capacities over the years. I see that your family was moved from Washington DC to Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia. Why so many moves Mister Delaney?"

Nick shifted from one foot to the other "Dad had a hard time keeping a job. He's not the easiest man to work for. Then my mom got sick so we moved around finding her better doctors"

Seemed reasonable enough Andre supposed, he rifled through some papers till he found what he was looking for "I see that you have a brother, Tristan?"

"Yes" Delaney answered nervously.

"Says here he joined the Marines when he was 17, did a couple tours overseas. Then he was suddenly discharged. Right before your family moved away. Why is that?"

The young man looked nervous…he was hiding something, but what? "His service contract was up." He looked at his watch "Anything else Detective, I'm late for a meeting"

Yep, he was definitely hiding something. "Do you have any reason to harm Christina Davies? For the first time in the meeting Nicholas looked honestly surprised "No, why? Who would want to hurt Christina?"

"Seems you had been pestering her. Not taking no for an answer and things like that."

Embarrassment washed over Nicholas's cheeks "Yeah, I…I didn't do the right thing there. I should have just let her go. It's just that she's incredible and I really hoped we had something. I really liked her. I wouldn't hurt her. I got carried away and I feel bad, I'm afraid to apologize cause I don't want her to hit me"

Andre chuckled at that; she was certainly a firecracker "Alright, thank you. We may be asking you more questions later."

"Of course, any way I can help" Delaney turned on his heel and left the office, leaving Andre with a sinking feeling that he had 'something' to do with the fires but not 's assault. So who was?


	16. Chapter 16

**I hope this is a satisfactory ending to the Nicholas saga. And some quick lovin for Erik too! Enjoy! Mind the rating, still applies.**

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As Detective Michaels dug deeper into the case files he was finding some…disturbing missing links. Something wasn't right with the Delaney family, but he wasn't so convinced it was anything to do with Nicholas. Andre had gone to Quantico Virginia, Tristan Delaney's last assignment before his discharge. After talking with his superior officers and fellow soldiers he was convinced that not only were Christina and Erik in danger but that mental illness ran in the Delaney family.

Rushing back to Pennsylvania Andre immediately went to Erik Montgomery's house; he had to alert them to his current theory.

Christina and Erik walked into the study, looking much more relaxed than before. Christina had been able to procure a new wardrobe; she and Erik seemed to be moving on from the trauma of the previous week.

"Thank you for agreeing to this on such short notice Mister Montgomery, I've found something in my investigation that is a bit disturbing and I needed to alert both of you. I've already told the feds who are following up leads as we speak. I don't think it was Nicholas Delaney who started your fire Miss Davies, or yours Mister Montgomery. I have strong evidence that it was in fact his twin brother Tristan Delaney."

"Delaney? Matthew Delaney's son?" Erik asked wide-eyed.

"Yes. When Tristan was younger he was diagnosed with ADHD, his psychiatrist warned his parents that he saw red flags that could suggest severe Antisocial Personality Disorder. But it's hard to diagnose in children. When I talked to his doctor he told me that Tristan could have very well been boarder line psychotic. He neglected to tell anyone this when he joined the Marines at 17. Where he became an EOD specialist."

Chris couldn't help the gasp, when Erik looked at her in question she explained "Explosive Ordinances Division. He knew a lot about bombs" one piece of the puzzle slid into place.

Detective Michaels continued "He was discharged after 5 years, his behavior had taken a severe downturn, animals on the base were turning up tortured, there was a series of fires set with an unidentified accelerant used. We were able to match the same chemical properties to 5 fires that are linked to yours Ms Davies." He took a breath before continuing "I talked to some of the Delaney family neighbors who told me a similar story, neighborhood animals being tortured and found dead and small fires being set when the boys were younger. Apparently Nicholas always took the blame for Tristan"

Christina felt very sad for Nick; he had to have known exactly what his brother was but who would say anything?

"I was able to figure out that Tristan's mental decline happened after his mother committed suicide" he heard a gasp from Chris and looked up to see her face drained of all color. "I'm fairly sure that Tristan is responsible."

"But why me?" Erik asked, anger in his voice and his fists clenched.

"Apparently there was some kind of dispute between you and the boy's father?" Andre asked.

Erik nodded curtly "He accused me of stealing his work, not understand that my designs had been submitted months before his and that pre-selection had determined my designs would win over his."

"The rest of this is merely conjecture. I believe Tristan heard his father berating you, being angry with you and blaming you when the family had to move, when in fact they were moving because they had to seek different doctors for the very ill Mrs. Delaney. I think Tristan took matters in his own hands on leave, I discovered that he was home on leave during the time of your fire Mister Delaney. I think he had the knowledge to set a bomb that we would have a hard time tracing, I think he was the one who killed your wife and daughter Mister Montgomery"

Erik bowed his head, he hadn't realized how badly he'd needed to know who and why. He felt an arm wrap around his shoulders and pull him closer to his lover. Without her by his side he didn't know how he would have survived this.

"Why Christina?" Erik's voice sounded deadly pissed off.

"I believe that Nicholas might have mentioned his failed attempts to start a relationship with her. Tristan is obviously very disturbed, not acting with any sort of sense at all. Just lashing out angrily." Andre watched Erik and Christina carefully.

"He's regressing, it's no longer enough to set the fires. Now he is watching them at the scene rather than being satisfied with watching the news reports. Which makes him dangerous, especially to you Ms Davies."

Her blue eyes hardened to ice "I hope that bastard has the balls to try to finish me off himself. Nothing less than that is going to get rid of me"

Erik started to protest but she looked at him, this side of her that he'd never seen worried him. "Erik, that son of a bitch tried to kill you, he killed your wife and daughter and has destroyed how many other families and then he destroyed my home. That little bastard is going to have to kill me, look me in the eye. Nothing less will stop me. I got shot three times in Afghanistan and that didn't kill me!"

Detective Michaels was a little shocked by this side of Christina. She turned to look at him "What do I have to do?"

This was where things got a little shaky "I don't know yet. He's not following any set pattern now; he's deviated from the script so we can't determine what he'll do. I've called in an FBI profiler but I'm afraid that there's no time for that. Profiling takes time, I don't think we have it"

Christina looked surprised "But they do it in like 10 minutes on TV"

Andre gave her a wry smile "Creative license. It's not nearly as glamorous as they portray on television. What I need you to do is be careful. My bet is he's not going to be satisfied with things, he'll try again. With the property being gated, surveillance everywhere and the grounds crawling with police, private security and feds he won't make his move here."

Erik could see where this was going…bait; they wanted to use Christina as bait. "No!" he shouted, "You can't do that! She could die!"

"We're going to take every precaution to ensure that doesn't happen. We're hoping he'll get sloppy. We have agents posted all over this neighborhood. I promise you we are going to do everything we can to keep her safe"

Chris took his hand "I have to do this Erik. I'd rather him try to hurt me then for him to kill more innocent people. I'm not a damsel in distress. I'm a badass with weapons and I fight dirty, remember?"

Erik's face was void of any color and fear was swimming in his eyes but he nodded, there was nothing more he could do.

* * *

So the three of them set a plan. Once Detective Michaels coordinated with the Feds their plan of attack was solidified. They had determined that Tristan had been studying her for quite some time, so he probably knew that she used to run. He probably even knew what route she used to take. They were hoping that he'd still be watching her. The plan was she'd go for a run, just like she used to. It was kind of a long shot because it had been so long since she'd done it. But if she was visible enough it could just work.

FBI agents would be monitoring her progress every step of the way, along with some of Erik's men and a few local police thrown in for good measure.

She been given a bottle of pepper spray, which had been tucked in between her breasts, sung in the sports bra and totally invisible to anyone. She'd thought about carrying a small handgun but had no way of discretely hiding it. One of her ipod ear buds had been replaced with a two-way radio so she was always in contact with Detective Michaels. That was tucked into the armband already on her arm and a transponder had been attached (rather embarrassingly by Detective Michaels to the waistband of her underwear.

Now she was in the driveway, hopping from foot to foot, stretching her legs and preparing for this, hoping it worked. Erik came out, hands on hips to watch. She tucked the ear buds in her ears, gave him a smile and jogged off down the lane, leaving Erik to wait…

Making her way back to her townhouse Christina was watching each person as she passed him or her, alert on a level she hadn't experienced since her deployment. Her heart ached as she saw the charred remains of her home, but jogged on passed it, circling the cul de sac and lopping back around. As she did she ran into someone, she stifled a scream when she saw Nicholas…or was it Tristan.

"Chris! Oh god you're okay!" he exclaimed. "Meg said she hadn't spoken to you in a few days and she was worried. Look, I'm sorry for being an ass. I really didn't mean it!" his eyes darkened "I have to tell you something."

Chris tried to steady her breathing; she nodded and wiped some sweat from her forehead "Okay, what's up?"

He pulled her to the curb "It's not something good. It's…well it looks really bad"

She tensed up, unsure of what he was going to say. "Okay"

"Look, I know you think I set the fire at Montgomery's house all those years ago and you probably think I set the fire to your place but I didn't!"

"Then who did!"

"It was my brother, Trist-" he was cut off by the sound of a gun shot, Nick crumpled to the ground and Chris looked down at herself, horrified to see blood on her clothes. She knew she hadn't been hit.

She watched as his brother dispassionately kicked his brother onto his back, the groan of pain told her that Nick was still alive.

"You really shouldn't have done that Nicky." Tristan said, his eyes cold and distant.

"You can't do this Tris! This isn't the way!" Nick shouted, though it was a bit weak.

She heard the cock of his handgun again and felt the terror rising in her throat. "Tristan, wait. Just put the gun away."

"No, you see that's not how it goes you whore! You die. I live. I kill Montgomery like I meant to years ago"

Her eyes hardened "Why?!"

A careless shrug "Because he got in my way."

Looking around Chris hoped to god the cavalry was on it's way.

"Oh I don't think anyone will come. They're all pretty well occupied right now with a horrific car accident down the block"

Fear inched its way through her body, her eyes widened a little making him laugh. "You all think you're so smart! Well I'm smarter!"

His hand wrapped itself around her throat and squeezed. She clawed at his hand, fear overtaking her good sense for just a moment before she focused herself. With one hard kick to his groin he dropped her and his gun, it skittered across the concrete out of reach. He gave an angry roar and swung at her, managing to connect with her ribs though it was fortunately a weak shot. She nailed him squarely with the heel of her palm again, rebreaking his nose, and not in a way that would be easy to correct.

She hit the panic button next to the transponder and waited for his next attack. He grabbed her around the waist and tackled her to the ground. Her elbow and shoulder connected with the concrete hard, making her grunt with pain. She struggled against him; kicking him in the stomach but not before he placed a good slap across her face. With an elbow to his face he stumbled back, dazed.

The whine of the police sirens could be heard, along with the screeching tires as they whipped around the corner. Tristan tried to escape but her palm heel strike had blurred his vision so badly and severely knocked his equilibrium out of order. Her leg was aching, not used to this kind of exercise but she was able to land a good solid right hook to his jaw, sending him sprawling.

Her bad leg gave out just as officers pounced on him, flipping him over and cuffing him. Christina crawled over to Nicholas's prone from, ignoring how the concrete was tearing the flesh on her knees. She took his hand and checked his pulse. Thank god her brother had bad aim, it was lodged in his shoulder but that could be repaired easily. If it had hit a major organ he would be in big trouble.

"I'm sorry Chris, god I'm so sorry." Nick gasped through his pain.

"Shh, it's okay Nick. You didn't know." She moved his head to her lap, smoothing the hair back, waiting for the EMTs to arrive "Just relax. Help will be here soon"

She saw a tear roll down his cheek "He's sick, he needs help. I…I was ashamed to tell you my brother was mentally ill."

Christina could see how upset he was about the whole situation. "Don't worry about it right now. Think, you can show off your war wound to all the ladies soon" that startled a weak laugh from him. The medics finally arrived and she was pulled off to the side, a thousand questions came from all directions. One voice stood out in the crowd. Erik was elbowing his way through the crowd to her.

His eyes teared up when he saw the blood; she quickly took his hand "It's not my blood. Tristan shot his brother"

Erik gathered her to him, not even thinking about the blood that was getting on his clothes. "Oh god, I saw the blood and I thought" she could feel his body trembling.

One of the medics stepped in "She's free to go Detective. Nothing more than some bumps, bruises and cuts"

Detective Michaels took at the entwined lovers "Go home. I'll be by tomorrow to get your statement Ms Davies"

Erik nearly drug her do his car. As soon as she walked in the front door the staff started to fuss over her. She insisted all she needed was a shower and clean clothes. Erik paced outside the bathroom door as she did. When she walked into the main room, a towel wrapped around her but her hair was still hanging down her back in wet ringlets.

Before she could say a work Erik had her pinned to the wall, her towel in a heap behind her and hi hands running over her body, desperately, lovingly. His mouth sought her own, anxious kisses to her lips, neck, and chest. His hands cupped her bottom and pulled her against him, she groaned when she felt something hard pressed to her stomach. Her body was lifted and sat roughly on the edge of the desk, his fingers plunging into her, groaning against her neck as he did, her fingers threading through his hair and her head tipped back, egging him on.

"Oh god Erik! Please!" she begged, gasping in pleasure as she felt his tongue touch one of her nipples. She heard the telltale sound of a zipper being pulled, not long after that she felt him, sliding into her. Wrapping her legs around his waist and begging for more, Chris buried her face against his chest and cried out in time with the powerful waves of her release, clawing at Erik's back as he too reached his end, crying her name in his ecstasy.

He slumped against her; the high emotions of the day and the fierceness of their lovemaking had exhausted him. His sharp gasping breaths against her made Christina realize how scared he'd been for her. Now they could start to put everything behind them and hopefully start anew.


End file.
